The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1906-06-29
WHAT SHOULD A PREACHER
PREACH ABOUT?

IL we cannot De h1gn-m1nded we
can at least try to be broad-minded.
We endeavor to take a broad view Of
life. We do not believe in pursuing
narrow ruts nor having other people
do so, either We believe that
preacher, in his capacity as a citi-
zen, should perform all the duties of
citizenship the same as any other cit
izen. He should take sides in politics
and express his convictions at the
primary and at the general election.
If there is convention he should
take part in it and let his ideas be
known. If there is such thing as
purifying politics" he should do his
part towards it. He should take a
the city in which he resides the
same as he does in the home life"
A preacher should not differentiate
himself from the balance of mankind.
He should take an interest in the
schools and in everything, indeed,
that concerns the public welfare.
But when he occupies his pulpit
that is another matter. There he
should be most circumspect. He should
not carry his politics into his pulpit
because his congregation may be di-
vided and he is not employed for that
purpose. He can be as strongly de-
nominational as he pleases, because
if he is a Baptist he is expected to
preach the Baptist doctrine and in as
clear, simple, strong and forceful a
manner as possible. If a Methodist,
Presbyterian, Catholic, or member
of any other denomination, the same
doctrine holds good. He is expected
to make his own creed the strongest,
his own doctrine of faith clearer than
all others. He should preach on all
spiritual topics. But it is debata-
bic question if he has the right to dis
cuss public, social or general topics
in the pulpit.
Here is what Mr.. Thomas Jefferson
said on this subject:
1.-The mass of human concerns, NOR
al and physical, is so vast, the field
of knowledge requisite for man to
conduct them to the best advantage,
| is so extensive, and much less in
that degree necessary for the inst-Ic-
/ ton of others. 1t has of necessity,
then, been distributed. into different
departments, each of which, singly,
may give occupation enough to the
whole time and attention of single
individual. Thus we have teachers Of
languages, teachers of mathematics,
of natural philosophy, chemistry, of
medicine, of law, of history, of gov
eminent, etc. Religion, too, is a sep
arate department, and happens to be
the only one deemed requisite for all
men, however high or low. Collections
of men associate together, under the
name of congregations, and employ a
religious teacher of the particular sect
of opinions of which they happen to
be, and contribute to make up a sti-
pend as a compensation for the trou-
BILE of delivering them, at such periods
as they agree on, lessons in the reli-
gion they profess. If they want in
struction in other sciences or arts,
they apply to other Instructors; and
this is generally the business of early
life. But / suppose there is not an
instance of a single congregation
which has employed their preacher
for the mixed purposes of lecturing
from the pulpit in chemistry, in medi-
cine, in law, in the science and princi-
pies of government, or in anything
but religion exclusively. Whenever,
therefore, preachers, instead Of les
son in religion, put them off with a
discourse on the Copernican system,
on chemical afinities, on the con-
struction of government, or the char
acters or conduct of those admins
tering it, it is a breach of contract,
depriving their audience of the kind
of service for which they are salaried,
and giving them instead of it, what
they did not want, or, if wanted,
would rather seek from better source
in that particular art or science. In
choosing our pastors we look to his
religious qualifications, without in
curing into his physical or political
dogmas, with which we mean to have
nothing to do.
81 am aware that arguments may
be found, which may twist thread
of politics into the cord Of religious
duties. So may they for every other
branch of human art or science. Thus,
for example. it is a religious duty to
obey the laws of our country; the
teacher of religion, therefore, must in,
struct us in the laws, that we may
know how to obey them. 1t is a reli-