The Daytona daily news. [volume] (Daytona, Fla.) 1903-1926, 1922-01-09
The Book Which
Won Lincoln to
Christian Life

IN ms prelude to his sermon in Cal
vary Baptist church. Sunday evening
iDr. Robert Stuart Macarthur. OF New
York City, and winter preacher in this
church, spoke as follows:
Whatever concerns the boyho0d and
manhood Of Abraham Lincoln inter
ests America and the whole world.
This question is often asked. Who
was the greatest man the world has
prOducedy' After years Of careful
though. ! answer. Moses AS lead
or OF millions Of men, women and chill
dren. who had been slaves. from Egypt
70 the confines OF Canaan. and az law
siser for Israel and the world, Moses
- the worlds greatest man Who
was the second? In answer, the
Apostle Paul As scholar. preacher.
missionary. writer and theologian for
the Christian church, the Apostle
Paul is the worlds second greatest
| man. 1t is no little honor for the Jew
ish race to have given the world its
two greatest men Who was the
third After wears Of thought. | an
! swer. Abraham Lincoln Some critics
Will differ with me in this answer. but
taking into the account the enormous
disadvantages which he Overcame and
| Lbc SuDiifilc ucieulS III kftdl0tSS 10
which he rose | think he is the third
greatest man OF the human race. All
that entered into the making Of such
man Is OF deepest interest to all
J thinking men.
Surely the book which largely shap-
ed his religious thought must interest
US all. This book was long lost, but
was recently found We are indebted
to Rev. Dr. w. +. Barton, Of Oak Park,
! Ill, for the discovery OF this book.
I 1t changed the religious thinking OF
Abraham Lincoln. 1t was published
IN Cincinnati in 1913. Its title Is THE
1 Christian s Defense" its author was
Rev. James Smith A prolonged
search was made through second
hand shops and the attics OF Libraries.
colleges and theological seminaries
from Boston to st. Louis before the
discovery OF the book was made.
Abraham Lincoln was for time
partly submerged by the wave Of
French infidelity which swept over
America soon after the American
revolution It affected all classes and
conditions Of men. There were very
Few Christians in our colleges In
1875 Timothy Dwight, the noted
scholar and author. became president
OF Yale College. There were scarcely
more than half a dozen professed
Christians then in Yale. Princeton
College was founded in 174G; the NUN
her Of men openly Christian there
soon after the revolution was pam
fully small. Harvard is the oldest Of
our America colleges, having been,
founded in 1888. for the training of
young men for the Christian ministry
but at the close Of the period named
the number Of its Christian students
was small indeed.
1t was impossible that Abraham
Lincoln could have escaped the aenos
tie and atheistic influences OF his
early life. His father was Baptist.
so We're his mother and his stepmoth-
er. The place and date Of his father :
confession Of faith and baptism are
Well known. Our greatest American
was the product OF a Baptist home
but MS social environment was prim-
tive in the extreme. In his early boy
mood he read books of a high order
educ ationally and relgiously. but in
ms early manhood he read Paine :
Age of Reason and Voinevs
Ruins. and was much impressed by
Their arguments Now comes the
story oT the long missing book and
Is influence on his Subsequent life
In $3.50 Edward Baker Lincoln.
second son Of slr and Mrs. Lincoln.
died at Springfield. III Funeral ser
sicsss were conducted by Rev Jane,
Smith. pastor OF the First presby-
terrain church II the absence Of Rev
Charles Dresser Of the Episcopal
church. Of which Mrs Lincoln was
then Il member soon .ffarns4rd in