Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1905-05-13

pet Is the voice of the eternities. God,
heaven, Immortality, resurrection, as
cension, heaven, hell, eternity, redemp-
ton, salvation, eternal coronation, eter-
nal suffering, .re its mighty subjects.
Like the mornings Of the mighty deep,
its voice comes reverberating down the
halls of the past ages. Like the echoes
which are tossed from hillside to hill
side up among the Alpine crags, its
hopes go echoing down the centuries
upon centuries and the millenniums up
on millenniums to come. It's themes are
the mightiest of all themes. No sub
ject in all the realm Of thought Is as
great as that which occupies the public
speaker in gospel oratory.
If its theme were not the greatest OF
all themes, then my caption today
could not be written. You must have a
great theme TO produce sublime ora
tory" All the students of oratOry rec
ognze this law. Why is Abraham Lin
coins Gettysburg address to be rank
ed among the greatest OratiOns OF the
ages? Was he placing few poetic gar
lands upon the graves Of the deadf No.
He was making a national plea for for
giveness and love. Why did Patrick
Henry, the great Virginia orator, with
a single sentence rouse the passions Of
his hearers until he swept them from
off their feet? Though the hangman's
moose was dangling over every one Of
his auditors heads, yet they were
ready to risk all because he was plead
ing for sweet Libertys shrines. Why
did John Knox's eloquence set all Scot
land afire? Why did Martin Luther's
thrill all Europe with the di-
vine love? Why did Savonarola arouse
Italy until its inhabitants were tumul-
tuous in agony and strife? Why did
Cicero's arraignment of Catiline and
the philippics that DemOsthcnes hurled
against the king of MacedOn create
armies and make men enthusiastic in
battle? Were these orators declaimlng
for selfish political purposes, merely
trying to destroy rivals who were OBJ
structing their path? No. They were
attacking lust and Righteousness and
tyranny and crime of all sorts. 1t was
their mighty themes that made their
eloquence effective You must have q
great theme to have a great grafton.
Must Have Great Theme.
This contention is true. Where, then,
can you find greater themes for true
eloquence than in gospel oratOry? Is
there a sounding line which can go to
the bottom of a deeper sea? Is there
any power on earth which more surely
can transform wrong to right, make
the strong care for the weak, make Tyr
amy take her iron heel off the neck Of
prostrate Helplessness, than the power
of Jesus? Where can you find an i'm
mortal panacea for the graves horror
and for the cure of sin save in the
crucifxion and the resurrection and
the atonement of Jesus Christ? The
themes of gospel oratOry are not only
wide enough and great enough to put
q man in right touch with God and
beaven but they are so great that II
we once accept them and practice
them they will give us perfect homes,
perfect neighbors, perfect nations and
a perfect world. They are so great
that If we only practice them "love,
JOY, peace, long suffering, gentleness,
goodness, faith, meekness, temper
ance," shall everywhere be supreme in
the human heart. Could we have a
surer cure for all the evils Of the world
to come than is offered in the themes
of gospel oratOry?
To make right might and to redress
the wrongs of limited class have been
the causes which have inspired wonder
full orations during the past years.
Watch the lightnings of invective that
have leaped out of the eyes Of the ora
tors during the dark days Of the aboli-
ton movement Amid that mighty hur-
ricane of oratOry we can see William
Lloyd Garrison, with clinched fists, de-
fvIng the Boston mobs. We can hear
his biting words, amid perfect pande-
monium Of wrath, crying: "You will
hear me. In spite Of yourselves you
will hear mew You can see Wendell
Phillips standing amid n shower Of
brickbats waiting for lull In the storm
to drive into the hearts of his hearers
another sentence to prove to them why
the black men should be free. We can
hear glorious John Bright pleading for
the rights of the black men from the
other side of the sea. And If injustice
against the black men offered such
mighty theme for the eloquent tongue
shall not modern injustice against the
white slave offer Just as great a
theme for gospel eloquence? on, yes,
gospel orators have the mightiest OF
themes for eloquent speechl The gos-
mel of Christ will right all wrongs.
1t will emancipate a sinner from all
sins. 1t would make all men conquer
ors in this world as well as in the
world to come. Man, would you be
truly eloquent? Then by the power OF
the Holy Spirit have your tongue plead
for the universal acceptance OF the
gospel in impassioned oratory.
The Cure For Ills.
Gospel oratory gives the subllmest or
all themes. 1t does more than that. 1t
offers the greatest of all authorities by
which those themes are discussed. 1t
comes to man and places in his hand
the Bible and says: "Man, here is the
word Of God. These are not my state
ments. These are promises made by
our divine Father If you will accept
Gods word and do as this book directs,
your life will be blessed" Now, it is
an easy matter to discuss a wrong. 1t
is often very easy for a physician to
diagnose a cancer But the cure-aye,
that is the rub Easy to attack
moral wrong. Yes. But it Is another
matter to find a right solution for that
wrong. This the Bible offers. 1t
comes not as a theorist. 1t comes to