The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-07-22

J DIR. TALMAGE'S SERMON {


naturalist, Oxen. Lorenz Oxen was rich
In brain, but poor In pocket, Therefore
he placed before Agasslz but two dishes
one of potatoes boiled and one Of potatoes
roasted. But while the young naturalist
sat by the side of the great scientist Oxen
unfolded for him his Investigations In
natural philosophy. Never before,
wrote ARassis, were such potatoes grown
on this planet, for the mind Of the man
seemed TO enter into what we ate socially
together, and l devoured his Intellect
while munching his potatoes, I repeat
IT. never ate such q dinner before or
snee.e As Agassiz, the great naturalist
was feasting because he was sitting at the
table of Oxen, so many of the great intel
leotual giants are feastng because they
are sitting at the marriage banquet OF
Christ. They seem to care not what they
eat or what they drank as long as
Christ sits at the head Of the table and
they see him and hear his words. When
famous English writer lay Ill a few years
ago the nurse heard him talking. She
went to his bedside and heard him feebly
murmurlng the words, Now l lay me
down to sleep, pray the Lord my soul
to keep" II beg your pardon" said the
nurse when she knew that he was pray
ing II thought you wanted something
Il do" family replied Rudyard Kipling
1T want my Heavenly Father. He can
care for me now" Yea, that Heavenly
Father Is not the hope Of Rudyard KIP
ling alone. He is the hope of thousands
Of leaders of the world in almost every
department of life. Am l wrong In as
serting that the intellectual man is to be
seen among the guests at the kings ban
ouet which he gives for his Divine Son?
But no sooner does the messenger of
the king give the invitation to the mef-
chant prince and to the military ehlef-
tain or to the member of the sanhedrln
IL .f..f.- I i'm, nut
upon the shoulder of the servant who Is
holding his masters horse and say;
Wont you come to the kings marriage
feast? The king bids me ask you To
come also" "Ah, no. answers the ser
want; 'I cannot come. My master would
not allow 1t. He would not hire me
day IL I did not keep in my social place.
I can harness up his chariot and drive
him to the temple, but l would not dare
stand by his side in that temple of wor-
ship. This bridegroom's banquet is only
for the arstocrat 1t is spread for kings
and queens. 1t is not for the plebeian
II there was a servants table adjoining
the kings banquet hall l might come,
but you would not have me sit down
with the bridegroom on one side of
me and my master on the other Nay,
this invitation is not for me- Yes, 1t
is, my friend" answers the kings mes
senger. This invitation is for the kitchen
as we'll as for the parlor, for the slave
as well as for the mighty potentate.
No Glasses in the Church.
Some people who are trying to build
class churches do not believe this, They
seem to think that the banquet hall OF the
royal king can be controlled by syndi-
cate of capitalists or by social classes,
even as a syndicate Of real estate men
can buy up a section OF land and lay 1t
out In building lots and decide who will
live there and who will not. You know,
of course, how this is done 1t Is by
imposing building restrictions After
the land has been laid out In building
lots, the owners say to the buyers; Now,
this lot is worth $4,000. But you cannot
buy 1t and build any house upon 1t worth
less than $1,000 We do this in order to
protect the neighborhood, so that only
the wealthy can come in. We do not want
the poor here. Neither do we want those
who cannot move in our social set
Thus some class churches would bar the
humble and poor out of the house of God
where they worship. But, my brother the
gold lace of a king and the silk robe OF
a princess are not essential factors for
entering into this banquet hall of the
Kings Son. God does not say You
can come if you are able to build
house worth $4,000 or You can come
if you are a university graduate or You
arms But God does say, you can come,
whether you wear a kings coronet or
kings livery, as long you come in the
name of Jesus Christ" Oh, servant, hold
ing thy masters horse; oh, humble man,
working as clerk in the store; oh, nurse
girl, rocking the baby to sleep in the
nursery the Kings messenger bids thee
come to the marriage feast of His Son.
Thank God all social organizations are
rot built upon the standard of money or
fame Away back in the fourteenth CEN
fury a great plague was devastating Flor
ence, one of the chief cities of Italy.
Something had to be done Immediately
to bury the dead and to care for the sick
and friendess. Thus the Brotherhood of
Miserlcordia was organized. Its members
were drawn from every walk of life. The
rich man In his palace was member Of
It, and the poor man in his nut was also
a member. The king upon his throne and
the footman waiting at his door might
both have their names enrolled upon the
membership of this society. No sooner is
mission of mercy necessary to be per-
formed. like the burying of the pauper
dead than the leader of that district no.
titles his men. These men come at once.
They are all dressed alike. They are all
covered with a long black robe which,
Ike a eowl, covers both head and body.
Only the two glitterng eyes of the man
can be seen shining through that cowl.
Thus as the corpse Of the friendless man
is carried to the grave these black robes
of the bearers are the same, but under
meath those robes you can see the costly
shoes of the aristocrat side by side with
the hobnailed shoes of the poor peasant.
The Brothershood Of Misericorda places
all Its members upon the same level.
There is a fraternal organization, a
Brotherhood OF Misercordia in the ban
cuet hall of the Kings Son. There we
shall find the rich and the poor man,
the intellectual man and the humble man,
the master and the servant. There shall
, be all social classes sitting side by side.
attired In the wedding garments that the
King provided. Remember We not the COM
mand, go ye, therefore, into the high
ways and as many as we shall find bid
to the MARRIAGE
Enter the Homes, Too.