The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-04-08

l bad matters worse. These would-be re- l ligious-poltical leaders of the pulpit are
 the most gullible subjects of professional I politicians, the first to state their side 1 and cause, making ready converts to all | the visionary impossibilties of the com 1 plex political arena of the world.
 | I have known, and so have you of 1 foolish, mischievous sermons which have l brought the whole fraternity of preachers
 into discredit have disgusted all intelli 1 gent and sensible people, and have proved 1 mo-s pernicious than a score of anathe- 1 matized hereses. The preachers of these I sermons were solemn, busy-bodes, in l termeddling in others affairs We must | not forget the Doctor Burchards" in po- 1 litical campaigns. They prove the wise | pro7erb that no knave can do such dam l age as a mistaken saint But even when I the preacher has some adequate knowl- 1 edge of his subject and is able to preach l politics as wisely as a statesman, even | then his difficulties are but multiplied; | the more he knows the more difficult he I finds the choice between two sides. What l can he say? The matter is hundred | times more complicated than he thought. Science sociology, industrial economies, politics-these are not the plain themes easy to understand. easy to adjust and to determine. When he stood up in his frst rashness to demolish in twenty minutes, what Herbert Spencer had pondered Tn silence twenty years before he allowed himself to frame his theory. the case seemed very simple, when he called the tragedy of industrial situation into nis court, and passed sentence with such astonishing celerity, having for witnesses only the columns of the morning paper, there were no disturbing questions Tn ms mind. But the simplicity was the foolish simplicity of narrow-Suaged, pitiable and inexcusable ignorance. After the space of a careful study the thing does not seem so plain. Thus he begins to see both sides. He finds out little by little that the Pharisees have the one hand, the Herodians are not so completely in the wrong. And gradually as he goes on, learning wisdom by his manifold blunders, he comes to recognize the divine prudence exemplf1ed by our Pattern God Man, Jesus Christ our Lord.
 Never Entered Into Details.
 He begins to deal with them, these hard questions as Jesus Christ dealt with them Jesus never entered into the details of any partisan dispute. Neither did He ever attempt to settle any discussion by His own decision. That He distinctly declined to do. He knew very well that no result will ever be reached by adding
 
 rights of the other side, and subtraetlng one from the other. And He knew, also, that no third party will ever really bring about of hs own voice final and satis- factory settlement. The disputants must decide their own discussion. The part of the religious teacher in the matter is 10 lift up the whole debate Into clearer air. He must deal with the everlasting veri- ties. He must bring the light of eternal principles to shine into this darkness to show the path. These principles, insisted upon over and over preached and preached and preached, will by and by bring peace. Caesars things to Caesar: Gods to God. The Pharsee cannot quar- rel with that; the Herodian cannot dis pute that. Let them go home and think that over, and follow the wise counsel, That will be the end of partisanship; that will be the beginning of brotherhood. Who can dispute this gospel of our blesstd Lord? When they heard these words they marvelled, and left Him and went their way; they had been given the political sermon that they asked for, and 1t had amazed them into silence. The Herodians' share in our Lords answer is emphasized every Sunday. We are warned unceas- ingly to render unto God that which is Gods
 That, indeed is supposed by some to be the whole purpose of religion-to get peo- pie to discharge their ecclesiastical and theological duties. But the Pharisees. the careful observers of these duties. the orthodox churchmen, have their share also in the answer. They are to play due allegiance unto Caesar Caesar is a short name for the world we live in, for the conditions that 5surronndsns, for the society in which we live and move. Cae- sar, in his Roman palace. was not an es- pecially admired person, not moral rhi1 bar of hard things could be said about him trutbfully. And Caesar today, though, he has wonderfully improved is not saint. If we believe half the worshippers tell us about politicians and political life in this country, we will see the New Jerusalem has not yet descended out of heaven into any discovered municipal boundaries. And we know more or less ourselves. regarding the social and the commercial situation. The Christian has sometimes been tempted to turn his face toward the sunset, and to put the world behind him in lying in wilderness, and to wait for night to bury it. and for new day to dawn in a world to come. He has shut himself up in a monastery, Of else, that kind of seclusion falling into disrepute he has kept his door close shut upon the world outside. He has stayed out of politics and abstained from society and taken but slight interest in the world. His conversation is in heaven his thoughts and hopes are there rather than here. He has reported to pay tribute to Caesar But Jesus teaches that there is a tribute which belongs to Caesar.
 First Duty to God.
 The first duty of man Is not to his own soul; it is to God for love of God, and then to our brother for love of our brother, and after that to ourselves. We are not brought into being here that we may nurse our souls, but that we may take our part in life about us. be inter- ested in it's interest. share its respon- abilities, and do our best to make it better Indeed, it is not possible for us to develop our own spiritual life alright, so long as we attend chiefly to ourselves. Some one has said that only God and one man are necessary in any religion except ours, but that God and two men are necessary for even be- ginning of the Christian religion. What we want, today, in our age, is more re- ligion in politics. not more politics in re- ligion. We may discuss reform forever. Nothing comes of it. We cannot legislate