The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1909-07-25
BISHOP JOHNSTON'S FAMOUS
SERMON ON PROHIBITION
What the Texas Bishop Said in Opposition t
Prohibition That Attracted So Much
General Attention.

orthodox faith In the divinity Of the
Son Of God, which allows such latitude
Of opinion to its ministers and menu
bers on all subjects when held Loyalty
within the limits Of the great funda-
mental facts Of Christianity as contain.
ed in the Apostles Greed.
mo man. and no set OF men. can
boast that the vote OF this. church -
carried in any mans breaches pocket.
be he pope or popelet, Roman or Pro-
testant, for Professionalism IL not
without its self constituted popes, nor
can 1t be said that Its vote can be sol
idly cast for any candidate or any
measure on which Christian men may
honestly and legitimately diner in
Judgment as to which Is the best policy
to pursue In public AFFAIRS under given
conditions.
ut is not to the credit Of any church
to,make such q claim for itself. or its
members for It 1t is proof positive
that 1t Is not free church, but one
that Is dominated In its thinking by
some one or more strenuous characters
who do all the thinking and are blind
ly followed by the unthinking masses,
as sheep follow q bell-wether, right or
wrong. whether through green pas
turees or over the frowning precipics.
This Is a church In which man
may hold any view he chooses in poll
tics or religion. SO long as he conforms
his conduct to the divine code Of NOR
ais as set forth In the Ten Command
ments given by God to Moses on Mount
Sinai which contain the root principles
of all true ethics regulating mans du-
ty toward God and his fellow men.
"of course. know the old joke con-
stantly repeated that It "is natural In
politics and religion, but SO long as
it continues to raise such men as still
answer TO its call from amongst the
best that the Anglo-Saxon race has
produced we can AFFORD to smile and go
on our way producing more like them,
because OF the liberty she gives them
to think. untrammeled by any narrow
limitations of sectrianism.
The Paramount Issue.
let me say at the start before COM
mon sanity and Christian charity are
reiegated to the rear. as they are apt
to be in the coming two years OF strife;
I say let me say that during the hotly
contested campaign of last summer l
was deeply interested In the main Isl
sue then before the people of the State,
and of this community In particular,
in which the law was being openly de-
fed, and from time to time in the press
and on the platform, spoke with no I'M
certain sound.
"The paramount issue then was,
thority of the States?' ! could not see
then, nor can now. how amongst good
citizens there could be any difference
of opinion ON that subject when SO
stated.
81 favored and voted for the submits
sion Of the constitutional amendment
to the people. did so because con-
sidered 1t unfair and unjust that the
generation of young voters who had
grown up since that Issue was before
the people, twenty-two years ago,
should by any means be deprived of
their right to express themselves In a
matter OF such general concern.
'T felt certain, and have often so
declared myself. that the Legislature
acted most unwisely when 1t refused
! to grant these newly fiedged citizens
| the privilege to cast their ballots on
| this question. 1t took no prophet to
| forsee that what has happened would
| happen and that is, that these young
men would tightly resent the action
which practically disfranchised them.
| A blind man could see what the result
would be; that is that we are to have
| two whole years Of angry agitation
| already begun, which will, doubt not
prove most detrimental to the business
| interests of the State. and fear to the
cause of religion as WE'LL