The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1905-10-20
SERMON ON BOOKS.
A Sermon by Rev. w. C. Lindsay at
the Oeaia Presbyterian Church,
Sunday, October IS


the OeaIa Presbyterian Church,
Sunday, October IS
Courtesy of the Ocala Evening Star
Tim. Alb: Until come, give at
tention to reading"
II Tim. Alb: Bring the books with
thee"
Paul never neglected one duty
the duty of self culture, through read
ing. Certain companions were al
ways with him-his favorite authors.
Himself a Hebrew, by much study he
became a cosmopOlitan-a citizen of
the wide lying universe Like Emer-
son. he believed that the scholar was
a favorite of heaven and earth, the
excellency of his country and the hap
piest of men" Could he speak to our
age today, his message would be
something about good books.
Our greatest things are not rapid
transit, steamships, engines, comforts
and luxuries-but books. Not the tel
ephone, by which men speak across
continents, but books by which living
men and dead men speak across CEN
turtles. Books are our universities,
where souls are made professors.
Books are Jewelers., not by lowering the
great, but by lifting the small
God has given four inferior teach
ers-travel. occupation, industry and
conversation; and four superior teach
ters-lOve. grief. death and books.
Wisdom is derived from these various
sources All of our faculties are linn
tied, but books come in and increase
them all. Books make us contempOr-
aries with Socrates, Solomon and Sem
AGA, with Caesar, Cicero and Christ
They make US citizens of every CLINE
and country. This bOOk-the New
Testament-makes us better acquaint-
ed with Christ than the people of
Nazareth, Samaria or Jerusalem could
ever be They could get only mOmen-
tary glimpSes of Him, but the gospels
put us down right by the side OF Christ
and give us his life in it's beautiful
whole. Thus books acquaint US with
the best men in their best moods.
Books are tools for the mind. They
multiply our advantages, enabling us
to reap in many harvest fields. They
enable us to visit chimes, cities, ancient
and modern civilizations; they enable
us to save time and strength; they in
crease our manhood and add to our
brain force. With books man of
seventy is wiser than he could posi-
bly, be. though he lived thousands of
years. without them. Books change a
a mans enemies into his friends They
shield him against ignorance. one of
our greatest enemies; they free him
from uperstitition-another enemy
and they fill him with gratitude.
Thank God for books, cheering our
solitude. soothing our sickness, refin-
ing our passions. bringing victory out
of defeat. That boy that girl, can
hardly fail in character, success and
happiness who. day by day, goes to
school to the sages and seers. Exper-
fence. supplemented by books, teaches
us more in one year than experience
alone can teach in twenty.
Books also preserve for US the Spir-
it of earth's great ones God sends,
a long intervals of time. few sons of
genius to earth Passing through our
life and world, they see wondrous
hear melodies too fine for our dull
ears What others see as bits OF coal
they see as diamonds. When the time
comes. the forces of genius break forth
in book or song or poem Seldom
come these elect ones Not many
Platos. only one, and then all men be-
came better thinkers Well did Charles
Lamb say that men should say grace,
not only over meals, but over a table
full of good books Man has no truer
friends Earth offers no richer BAN
quet-
Now let us search out the use and
purpose of reading The hunger OF
the body for food is not more real than
the hunger of the mind for facts and
principles ignorance is weakness
Success is knowing how Books make
us strong by killing the ignorance and
make us successful by showing US
how. Life is too short to obtain all
the knowledge We need through con-
versation and travel. Books alone can
supplement experience and give the
informa ton that makes man ready
against the day OF battle.
Mrs. Browning said: NO child can
he called fatherless who has God and
his mother; no youth can be friend
less who has God and the companion
ship of good books Books show US
the progress of the race and the con-
tinuity of history Books lead US
backward along the pathway of law,
liberty and religion. and set us down
in front of the greatest of earth, to be