Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1908-02-27
STRONG SERMON BY
RIN. I. {. GRIMES

an eternal protest against the union of
church aud sts'e. 1tey maintain that
the church sh8ulH n8. be- uaupet of
the State aud the stte must not b. q
slave ~ the church They hold that
our political principles dare not clash
with OUT fnozt hois faith The idea ~
the separation Of civil aud sacred in
tefests Is taught in tie Bible Rend
or unto Ceasat the things that are
Caeasfs and unto tod the thir ~ that
are God = Our Savior. when He
perceived that tley would come and
take Him by force and Make Him =
King, refused the offer and declined
the honor, by departing into noun.
tain Himself alone II Is His public
declaration My Kingdom il not Of
this world. " Hereby He teaches the
absolute severance Of the Kingdom of
God from the kingdom Of the world.
Both the church and the State have
inalienabie rights and common claims
upon the individual. and where these
are sacredly kept hy the patriot and
the believer. the welfare Of the nation
and the cause Of Christ will be assur-
ed. over one hundred years ago, the
congress of the United States OF Am.
erica ratified the first amendment 20
her constitution as follows; Con.
gress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibit
ing the free use thereof, or abridging
the freedom of speech or the press, or
the right of tile people peaceably to
assemble and petition the government
for redress of grievances. " The first
amendment is a virtual divorce of
church and State. Nothing has given
q greater impetus to the growth Of the
inafnt republic than this wise provis.
lou in its constitution
\ nation is union Of individuals.
\ patriot is lover of the nation. As
patriotic SONS and daughters of Am
erica We are the product OF the institu.
tions, of the life s7d of the spirit of
the nation 1t is our duty to apEreci-
ate the blessings which we enjoy as
citizens of this nation, to defend the
institutions. of our land. to perpetu-
ate them and to hand them down to
our posterity Liberty is the soul of
our history. In its civil aspect it
means whatever is right between man
and man. In its religious aspect, it
means whatever is right between God
and man. The two are essentially one.
God is the author of both civil and
religious liberty. If the Son there
fore shall make you free, We shall be
free indeed. -" The true patriot is the
true Christian and the true Christian
is the true patriot
There are few secret societies that
have grown more in numbers and in
fiuence than the Patriotic Order Sons
of America. - 1t is such fine organ
ization, with such grand motives. that
every free born American naturally
drifts into it's mystic chain. To tie
credit of this order, be it said, that the
flag of freedom, with its stars and
stripes, finds a fitting place in every
public school room in the land.
A banner is the ensign of a noble
thought, a grand purpose and a right
eous cause. The church and the nation
bava +bair own avnrasei No l,atfIa or;as
The cross is the sign of Christianity.
lone Lord, one faith one baptism, -
is the common motto of the Holy
Catholic church. When the army has
confidence in its general, it unfurls
its standards with resolute defiance,
enters upon the contest with brave
heart and is sure of victory. Our
worthy sires have set mp their ban
ners, upon which are emblazoned the
four foundation stones of our national
greatness; Namely: LIBERTY OF
CONSCIENCE, FREE BALLOT,
OPEN BIBLE and PUBLIC SCHOOL.
With these four pillars our national
fabric must rise or fall. I ask you
then as loyal patriots. to study these
notices on Our Banners in the light
of current events, remembering that
Eternal vigilance is the price of lib.
erty."
After speaking separately of the four
foundation sto OF our national
greatness, above referred to, the speak
er urged that all cherish true love
for God and pure patriotism for our
country, praying that the Flag of Free
dom unfurl its stars and stripes DER