The Tulsa star. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1913-1921, 1921-01-01
Are the Most Blasphemous Of
Gods Character Than All
Other Errors Combined.

HOou. IL HOuTlSneu AT time
when bull fights and gladitorial
contests were the public amuse-
ments most enjoyed This doc
trine of eternal torment flourished
when the crusaders were called
Holy wars. and with men and wo-
men were called heretics and often
slaughtered for speaking contrary
TO the teachings of papacy.
The majority of the clergy have
spent and are yet spending most of
their TIM soaring the people into
the churches, telling them 10 join
and escape eternal torment and
when the people get into the
churches and put their names OH
the roll. they are made to under
stand that the Lord wants them io
keep up their various church dues,
inrluding fat salary to the parson
build the church houses, etc. They
are further made to understand
that if they fail in these duties will
be turned out of the church where
the devil will get them and roast
them and torment them throughout
eternity. The poor people have
been taught and made to believe
that the Lord needs their money in
order to carry out his plans.
Dear friends, | want to brand
this money collecting in the name
of the Lord as blasphemous to
His Righteous name. The Lord does
mol need your puny. dimes and dol
lars to carry out His Great Plan.
This money collecting business in
the churches and for the churches
is a man-made institution. | am
fully aware that there are Scrip
lures which are being misrepre
Sented gy the clergy so as to make
it appear that the collection of
money in the churches is author
lied by the Bible. Some of the
Scriptures used are the Jewish Gus
tom of giving one-tenth which has
no application in this Gospel Age,
also the Scripture statement "Muz-
zle not the OK tha. treadeth out the
corn" which only means that a
preacher should have the same OPP
potunity to make living as any
cody else and that while he is Civ
ing all his time to advancing Gods
truth mot lies) be entitled to the
absolute necessities of lifc-place
to sleep and food to eat and no
more. Preachers are not to be a
burden to the poor people in no
way, shape, form or fashion. In
stead of being a burden TO the peo
PIE the true servants of God should
go and work with their hands to
support themselves and be able to
give to those less fortunale.(2 q Thes. |
3.:6-15). Paul worked with his
own hands that he might not be "a
burden to the people. The case
where Christ had His Disciples to
catsh fish and get money out of |
its mouth and put it in the collec-
tion is sometimes held up 10 the |
peopla as Christ approving church
collections but nothing is further
from the truth than using this scrip |
ture in such way; because Christ |
only intended to teach His Disciples |
that it was the best policy for them
to pay taxes to whatever govern
ment they may live under.
| beg to again remind you my
friends that the paying of fat sala-
ries to preachers and the building
of expensive churches is not recog-
nized by the Lord as work done un-
to Him. He wants no such work as
that. He wants the poor people |
relieved of their burdens. The only |
condition under which the giving |
OF money is accepted by the Lord is |
when it is given voluntarily and |
for the purpose of relieving the |
sufferings of the widows and or
phans and others of a broken heart |
and also money given to aid others |
in getting in the truth of Gods |
Plan (Not in lies.) Friends, you
will agree with me when | remind |
you that there are many millions |
of poor people in this land and |
country who are suffering greatlyl
for the absolute necessities of life |
and many of whom are living in the |
very shadow of church houses that |
cost hundreds of thousands of dol |
lars. God is not pleased with such |
arrangements and in the near fu-
ture He will dash to pieces this or
der of things and arrange matters |
so that the humble hearted and op-
pressed will come into their own.
Reverting to another phase of |
our sugject | wish to say that the |
Old Testament Scriptures were |
written in the Hebrew language
and the New Testament in the |
Greek. The word "Hell"is an Eng
lish. word sometimes selected by |
translators by the English Bible to |
express the sense OF the Hebrew
word SHEOL and the Greek words
HADES, TARTAREE and GEHEN- I.
Ma. These same words are some |
times rendered "Grave" and "Pit."
The word He'll in Old English US
age, before the Preachers gave it a |
new and special significance TO suit |
their own selfish purposes, simply |
meant to conceal, to cover. The
w rd "Helr" was therefore proper
ly used anonymously with the |
words grave" and "Pit'' to transla-
late the words SHEOL and HADES
as signifying the secret or hidden
condition of death. The word He'll
occurs 81 times in the Old Testa-
ment and in every instance it is
Sheol in the Hebrew. II does not
mean a lake Of fire and birthstone
nor anything resembling that |!