Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-03-30

NAApAA ~ WAN%% 80"
drys.
In the ninth chapter OF EccIes-
= tastes, seventh verse, we learn that
as a reward Cor their devotion and
loyalty God gave His people the
right to drink. II says:
60 thy way. eat thy bread with
Joy, and drink thy wine with a
merry heart. for God now accept
eth thy works"
shall now proceed to shSg by
the example of Christ that prOhi-
bition is un-Christian in character.
In the seventh chapter OF Luke.
S3rd and 34th verses, Jesus con-
trasts his habits with the habits OF
John the Baptist He says:
John the Baptist came neither
eating bread nor drinking wine, and
ye say he hath n devil. The Son
of Man Is coming eating and drink
ing and ye say behold the glutton-
Gus man, a wine bibbler. a friend
of publicans and sinners" ass.
Dry orators may deny that Jesus
meant to say that He drank what
John did not drink. But unless this
language means that John was a
teetotaler and that Jesus was tenn
perate drinker OF Intoxicating wine
1t means absolutely nothing. So
much for the example set by the
ideal moral character of all ages.
Every man who holds that 1t is
morally wrong to use wine discred-
it's Christ. 1t never can be Chris
tian to prohibit thing that Jesus
did But Jesus not only drank wine
but made 1t for others to drink.
In the second chapter of st. John
we have the story of Christs first
miracle. The host at the wedding
feast OF Cana provided wine for his
guests. but the supply gave out be
fore the feast ended. Then arose a
demand for more wine. The sainted
mother of Christ called His atten-
ton TO this demand.
There has never been on this
earth a more appropriate oppor-
tunity for making a prohibition
speech. Confronted by this de-
mand, had prohibition been Chris
ton principle Jesus would have
condemned the host for providing
the wine in the first place.
Had prohibition been in harmony
with the divine order Jesus would
have reproved the guests for drink
in. Instead He converted water
into wine to supply the demand
Nobody denies that He performed
this miracle, but prohibitionists
tell you that the wine He made was
not intoxicating. Fortunately there
was a witness present that nobody
could fool on grape Juice. Besides.
of To- a Ia
made an intoxicating beverage. He
said to the servants, Bear unto the
ruler of the feast" The ruler OF
the feast had two duties to perform.
His first duty was to taste all the
wine served to guests. To get this
job he had TO be an expert judge
of wine. His second duty was to
watch guests as they drank, and as
soon as they commenced TO show
signs of intoxication, substitute
the weak for the strong wine.
Had the wine that Jesus made
not been intoxicating, it would not
have been necessary to have Ii pass
through the hands of the ruler OF
the feast. When the ruler tasted
the wine Jesus made, he called the
bridegroom and said unto him,
Every man at the beginning dotn
set forth good wine, and when men
have well drunk, then that which
is worse"
Now If the good wine would not
intoxicate. 1t would have been fool
ish to switch the drinker to the
weaker kind. What kind of wine
did Jesus make? Was it the good
or the worse wine? The ruler said
of the wine that Christ made,
Thou hast kept the good wine
until now" The good wine was the
kind from which the ruler had to
switch in order to prevent drunk
enness. This proves conclusiyely
that the wine Jesus drank was In
toxicating. IL infinite wisdom per-
formed miracle 10 supply an in
toxicating drink, infinite wisdom
never can favor prohibition of the
supply. 1t never can become
Christian to prohibit anything that
Christ did.
You cannot find within the leaves
of the bible single text, rightly
interpreted, that upholds prohibi-
ton OF the manufacture and use of
alcoholic beverages. l challenge
and defy any man in the house to
name one. I'll give 800 for such
text. But brought with me pro-
hibition bible. In page 129 of this
book we read:
ooh, true believers, surely wine
is an abomination of the works of
Satan"
This is the Koran-the Moham-
medan bible. In this book. not IN
the Christian bible. prohibitionists
find their political gospel. They
would have you believe that Mo-
manned is a safer guide than
Christ, that the Koran Is a better
. standard for Christian men and
women than the holy bible.
/ have now established beyond
possibility OF successful contradic-
ton. that prohibition Is wrong in
principle, unchristian in character,
having not q single sound argu-
ment in its favor. II you could
sweep away everything | have said,
would still oppose prohibition IN
the name OF liberty. Without liber-
ty man = a clod. thing, a machine,
subject TO the whirns OF the master.
Give men liberty and there is no OBJ
stacle he cannot hope TO conquer.
no glory crowned height 10 which
he may not aspire. Give man lib
erty and you not only give him life
but impart the secret OF his divins
ity and bid him emulate the God.
You open wide the gates OF achieve