The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1912-01-15
BETTER TRAIT THOSE WHO
WE'D IN HASTE, SUFFER, IS
DR.. BLACKS DECLARATION
Bethany's Pastor Condemns Di-
vorce-Separation the Solution
In Intolerable Situation.
THE EVIL STAINS SOCIETY.
Law That Is In Advance of
Public Sentiment Is a
Dead Letter.

The Rev. James T. Black, ID. ID. !,
pastor OF the Bethany Presbyterian
church. spoke on The Divorce Evil"
Sunday night IL was the first OF a
series OF six sermons on important
subjects affecting society Each OF the
remaining topics will be treated In the
following five Sunday evenings The
sermons are under the auspices OF the
Mems Sunday evening league OF the
church.
DR.. Blacks text, last night, was: rs
IL lawful for a man TO put away his
wife for every cause?" and the answer
of Jesus, What God hath Joined to-
gether let no man put asunder." The
position assumed by the Pharisees TO
trap Christ In his teachins," said DIR.
Black, seems TO be the position OF
mahy In our time Wives and hus-
bands are divorced for almost every
conceivable cause With the past few
months a woman, who had secured a
divorce from her husband In one OF
our local courts. because he had failed
TO be home to dinner on four distinct
occasions when he had promised to be
on hand at a certain hour. asked for
my services. She had the feeling that
this was an outrage. She told her
trouble to the court, got her divorce
and in two weeks was on hand at the
minister's home ready for new mar
riage venture upon which she expected
the blessing OF the church
Every Protestant minister can re-
late equally foolish and wicked prop
ositions. Our society is strained all
over with these indelible marks of
matrimonial falsity and failIre. More
than 1000 divorces during the past
year in our fair city. the granting in
the United States between 1887 and
1906 OF 945,625 and an increase OF the
divorce rate for our whole country
per one hundred thousand of popula-
ton from 3S in 1880 to % In 1900, tell
the awful story. fhe reign OF terror
IN France was introduced by 10000
cases OF divorce in one year.
THE question OF divorce is far
deeper than what the law or the
statute book says. All effective law
must be backed by moral sentiment
and the law that is advance OF that
sentiment is dead letter. The ques-
ton is, what ought to be the standard
OF right-minded people, whether or not
the standard can be enforced by law
either state or federal? What should
we think on the subject? In what
direction should we try 10 influence
the moral opinion OF the community
Shall we follow the suggestion OF the
Pharisees or the plain teaching or
Jesus. Surely the safe course lies in
following Christ The result will be
best for both the individual and the
community.
. 1T Is best TO keep clearly In mind
the inducements that lead to mar
riage and the obligations that follow.
Inducements are often ephemeral,
beauty, charm. accomplishment. We
all know that beauty fades. II can.
not be a stipulation II Is certainly
not implied in the marriage bond that
marriage shall last as long as beauty
lasts. The same is true OF accom-.
plishments. But the obligations are
TO be permanent. II ii were not SO
the relations of the sexes in marriage
would soon approximate TO those OF
the brutes.
But people make mistakes. terrible
mistakes in marriage. And the most
common argument is that people
should not be made TO suffer for
single mistake. They say that the hap
DlneSS Oh d llltlllIlt SuOulu NV ON
sacrificed and that the punishment is
out of proportion with the fault. This
Observation-Disclosures appears every
where in life and is one of the most
effeciual means of educating the hui
man race. You rise in the night, pick
up the bottle OF poison instead OF
medicine. and the fault. how venial,
absent-m indedness, but the punish
nent. how terrible! A young fellow
INDUCES too freely and under drunken
excitement enlists in the army. On
the morrow he bitterly repents. But
he has enlisted and soon he Will be
sent 10 the front and perhaps he even
meets his death There are countless
situations In which decisions become
irrevocable. There are rash and fool
ish marriages. but IL is better that the
few should suffer the results of their
own folly than that the foundations
of society should be destroyed.
The right thing is legal separation
In intolerable situations, but divorce
60. 81 Inn in, he