Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1908-12-16
He ], 3 PULPIT.
A BRILLIANT SUNDAY SERMON BY
THE REV. DR.. c. f. AKEo.
Theme: chesterton's Discovery.

England. He toos for his text Mat
they 1928 and 90, II will give you
rest. Ye shall find rest unto your
souls. Come unto Me all .ye that
are weary and heavy laden and will
give you rest. Take Ny yoke upon
you and learn of Me, for I am meek
and lowly in heart. and ye shall find
rest unto your souls" and said:
This Is Christianity's first invita-
tion to the world. It applies the test
OF universal religion For the test of
> universal religion is not in the num-
bers of those who accept 1t, but In the
varieties of men and women who ae-
cept 1t, and whose needs 1t meets and
satisfies. This Invitation has been,
accepted by every kind and condition
OF men and women throughout the
whole of the human race; and every
type OF character, every circumstance
cf4need has responded TO this invita-
ton The men and women who have
a accepted have found the rest for
q their souls which Christ promised.
= But /. am not going to preach tonight
Fl upon this text Millions of gracious
n sermons have been preached upon 1t
q and millions of souls have been won
g TO the rest promised. I have one
8 purpose only in repeating the words
q at the outset, and that is that you
y may use them, not as a text to ex-
n pound but as a motto OF that which Is
3 to follow, for purpose to speak
a about conspicuous figure In the
n world of letters who has accepted this
q Invitation OF Christianity and found
a rest for his doubling, wondering, In
# curing mind, rest for his turbulent
q spirit, and he has written a book tell
81 ing US how he found hislway to Chris
u tianity and to the rest that Chris
g tianity offers.
The man Is Mr. Chesterton. His
books are freely on sale in this coun-
# try and he occupies very conspic-
81 uous place. in English literary life.
II The book is called = Orthodoxy. It is
Il a autograpbica the way
IS In which he brings himself to the ac-
~ cepeance of Christianity. The style
"a is all his own. He is the supreme
IA master of paradox among living men
IA the wide world over. His purpose is
~ to take any statement about any NOR
~ tai thing and show that universally
"a the eontraryis true. If, for instance,
" say that the doctrine OF original sin
s rs gloomy and depressing his method
w is to show that the doctrine of orig
& ina1sin is universally the NEST brac-
& ing and most invigorating and eX-
4 hilaratipg that the mind of man can
ia conceive. That is the mans way, and
Il he has attained to enormous Influence
and his books to enorscous sale by
. working this paradoXical method. 1t
< does not follow because I call your
attention to this book that / am COM
~ mending It unreservedly, but the
M value of the book is that it stimulates
u though 1t sets you thinking about
sherdeepest and highest things, and
& uy things deeply suggestive and
pfnlsto spiritual life. In one sense
D ia corrective of that very curious
~ cained temper os our day which
flches every now and then an en-
ly new, and originaL gospel that is
: g TO 5supersede all other gospels
have ever been preached and
ing in the millennium by special ex-
q ess with all expenses paid within
~ next fortnight. We have seen
much of that sort Of thing and it
a correctiYs Of this curious habit.
Is launching with banners flying
ID bands playing, a gospel OF to-
3prrow, which, on examination,
fSoves to be merely a secondhand
copy OF a sleepy edition of the gospel
OF yesterday afternoon.
Mr.. Chesterton Ikeps himself to an
English yachtsman. who in the Eng
iish Channel loses his bearings and in
Z his Imagination thinks he IS in the
4 Southern Pacific and on approaching
..ne land believes it is some uninhab-
q tied or savage island. He goes ashore
a prepared to meet Wild men and ami
% mails, and discovers that he Is among
q his own people in the familiar streets
il Of Dover or Brighton. Mr.. Chester
4 ton sets out to discover new ethic,
q new philosophy Of life, new moral.
] aity, and he discovered Christianity.
I have not been in this country twen-
ty months yet, but am quite certain
that there have been twenty new gos-
pels launched upon an astonished
~ public during that time. remember
one tnat was to take possession Of th g
church to win the world to Christ
inside OF the next twelve months.
@ The publisher sent me copy of the
& book for my opinion. and wrote him
that did not care two straws about
s fhcs sort OF thing, but before the ink
IS In my signature was dry a friend
called on me and / asked him how
a Dr. SO and Sos scheme was getting
Z on OH" he said, .he is about
s through with it."
said, Why, / have only just got
mis-, book from the publisher. THAT
does not make a difference" said my
friend. But" / said, show can he
g have got through with it already?"
He looked at me with pity for my
tlsnlar ignorance and non-apprecia-
\ ton Of the ignorance Of the American
mind and said, Have you not beer.
here long enough to know. how easily
81 we take thing up and how much
more easily we drop 1t again?" The.
fact is that what is new in these new
schemes is not true, and what is true
in Them is not new. ] am very glad
Et to1 have such man as Chesterton,
with his paradox, irony and sarcasm,
calling attertion to the utter folly of
! being led by this or by that, because
1T pretends to be new. You may say
we are in progressive age, but it Is
because we are progressive that we
must preserve our seli-respect and
/, not be carried away by this and that
I H@wind Of doctrine" Looking back
over twenty years, can recall in
numerable theories and PHILOSOPHERS
that have tried to take possession Of
men and the church; but they have
gone and the old faith, the old relig-
Mon and the old belief in Jesus and the