Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1916-05-04
Obe
Peoples Forum
Doesn't Like the Doctrine.

Editor Tidings. So far as / know,
1t is a wen-known and thoroughly
established principle, when an article
appears in the public press, or words
pass from the lips of the public orator,
they are no longer private property,
but become the property of the public,
which they can accept or reject, COM
mend or con lemn.
Therefore, may / not reasonably
expect the Peoples Forum" column
of your valued paper to give that
which appears to me to be just crit
icism of the methods pursued by the
evangelist, Mr.. Mathis? But first in
justice to the ministers of our city /
wish to say, l have learned to love
and respect them because each ex-
tends to the other the same kind,
Christian, courtesies that we desire
for ourselves, and therefore no jars
have ever occurred, to my knowledge.
But when this so-called evangelist,
Mr.. Mathis, comes to our city and
commences to throw out his ecclesi-
astical challenges" and his declara-
tions that he Stands as the champion
of national Sunday law" and that
when this law is thoroughly estab-
lished men and women that are now
good, conscientious, law-abiding citi-
zens must be branded as un-Ameri-
can, un- Christian and unfit for decent
society or American citizenship" and,
in his own language, they must be
clicked across the pond" that Is, II
they do not bow down to the legal
image which l, the twentieth-century
Nebuchadnezzar, hath set up. OF
course Mr.. Mathis has not got the
rack and thumbscrew installed as yet,
and since our grand old-time honored
constitution provides that "all can
worship God according to their own
conscience" and because of these con-
stitutional principles congress has not
seen fit to provide Mr.. Mathis with a
Russian Siberia to cast his subjects,
therefore his only recourse at present
is to "kick them across the pond"
Now if Mr.. Mathis will give one
command from that Man Of Calvary,
or example of the Apostles, where
they created sufficient public senti-
ment to secure law to promote any
feature of the Christian faith, like
Paul bowing before Gamaliel, for in
struction so / will humbly bow at his
knee and be taught more perfectly
and if he cannot do this, cannot dis
eliminating and deserving public
plainly see that this man is perpetual
ing the principles of the mystery OF
iniquity, which did finally in 53S A,
D. secure the power of the state to
further their so-called christian
faith" which power history and the
blood of millions of martyrs prove?
They continued until 1776, when
Maria Theresa, queen of Austria, pro-
nounced her celebrated edict of toler-
alton. which prohibited any more be-
ing "kicked across the pond" by the
toe of the legal boot.
In conclusion, it does not take the
discernment of a prophet to deter
mine the fruitage Of such teaching
in a community, because water can
not rise higher than its source.
Therefore, converts produced as the
result of such spirit sooner or later
will be found perpetuating these CO.
ercive principles in their work, un-
less God by his spirit working
through the local ministry elevate all
such to a proper standard and con-
ception Of true Christian faith and
loving service.
understood he was an evangelist
Of the Moody sort, and did not an
tagonize any ones faith, and I
thought II would be a treat for our
community to hear a man that had q
message Of salvation and that was