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Christian Wei
3. StYviteVisYief.^
2TUe STftrtetiau KiUrtr
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[ For the Christian In </<’{.]
CIIALIv LINES-N 6. 7.
j
FASHIONABLE FOLjL.fgg.
Brother Index .‘—Perhaps a glance at two or three
of the essentials to fashionable and refined life, in these;
latter days, may not be unprofitable as a‘the me. fpr a
moment’s reflection. To notice the tenth of them, with
the hundredth of their eviis, would require something,
indeed, more than mv short sketches or your long col
umns—for volumes upon volumes could not contaifl
all of them, portrayed as they should be for the good
.of the people. It would require a long time truly to
speak of tne fondness of dress, which carries the folks
to such extreme absurdities, and causes them to Deglect
every thing of a solid, usei
the salvation of the soul, for the decoration of tho
perishing body: or the love of trifling amusements
which leads to a neglect, of solid and important works
that demand the attention, and the vast consumption
of time, talents and money, which feXv can convenient
ly sparer or the love of earthly distinctions tmi\ hon
ors which confer vain titles and temporary elevation,
serving the ignorant and simple for a marvellous source
of wonder and admiration, and leading the mind to
view the creature as being higher than the Creator :
.or the desire to appear rich, while the pursers really
empty, the hands in debt for the clothing of the body,
and the disposition too easy to think of such a thing as
paying: or the contempt for the poor, who are far bet
ter, happier, more useful and independent than they
who contemn them, and better occupy their sphere of
life, living by the sweat of the brow, and feeding a
host of idle drones who honor them with their scorn:
or the attachment .to tattering and petty slander, which
injures many an honest good meaning person, who is
innocent of what he is accused of, and far above those
who accuse him, in moral worth and useful actions:
or the disposition to appear learned, when really noth
ing but ignorance reigns in the minds, and shows its
cloven foot to the gaze of the wise and unpretending ;
or the love of ease, which keeps many an able-bodied
fellow from honest industry, while ha cannot well live
-without it, and while his evil exampleris ruining others
Around him : ora disposition to treat Christianity and
its adherents with levity and scorn, when the heart is
so much in need of its divine influences, and the soul
must live in torment through eternity without it: or, in
short, the vain things that seem indispensable to people
of fashion and refinement are almost innumerable, and
their evils almost incalculable, fine “great man”
does or says something light and silly, and forthwith
he has twenty imitators; they in turn have their follow
ers, each introducing still more and jnorfe absurdities,
till,the thing pervades, first a citv. or a community,
Cttheij a nation, and finally the world at large. This is
; iftie of every thing in which .men engage; in dressing,
gating, drinking, talking, laughing, sleeping, waking,
-working, resting, living, dying ! All must be done ac
cording to fashion, or it is no go at all; “ ala mode” is
. Carrying tne people by story, from folly to vice, from
vice to crime, from crime to death, from death to eter
nal ruin! People say they “had as well be out of the
yWorld as out of the fashion,” and so they go into the
” fashion and out of the world in a hurry. It is not at
all probable that God approbates such conduct, and yet
V *
THE TRUTH IN L'OYE.
PEN YIELD (xJL, MADCPL 18, \m.
many who profess to be his followers are guilty jpS -it;
daily, and seldom think of the evils and reproaches!
they are bringing upon the cause they pitiless to honor,
The church js full of fashionable members, fashionable
preachers, fashionable religion—all spnricus coin, and
destined never to pass current at the qai of Heaven.
What is to be done ? Ilow are the evils.tp.be reme
died ! We that are now proud and J .shhuib]e must
become humble and plain, and all must take the word,
of God, learn their Christian duties, and do them, Let
this become the fashion, instead of our
ties, and all our disturbances and eiils will ceasej
and the other half be of little trouble. Who Says, aye?]
[ CSirirt/au iiifirr f■’ ! fff jwyTjPffi
MORAL AND RELIGIOUS
■On the means of improving our Be/igiy s Bfhncfalbfs. ]
In order to arrive at anything like Christian perfec
tion in this life, it is absolutely net-esshay that we in
crease continually our stock of religiofi knowledge:
and to this end, all . the means that cmfbe of any as
sistance should be Sought out and eft,/Joyed. These’
means are ifiaoy, and amply suflicienjjferrlhe aeco*m-i
plishment of the desired end;
ery one’s reach, and easily madY o.bei .iqnt to everyl
one’s command. Three or four of receive a
slight notice in this essay.
It will not be supposed tliat any person can make ad
vancement in religious knowledge witboufra constant
resort, to prayer ; this seems to be the great lever of
Christian power, and useful on every occasion, when
properly employed. The Scriptures of the Old and
New Testaments agfee in enjoining flats as a ditty on
men* and in urging it very frequently urM thoif atten
tion ; ineeed it seems that tho many wih&L|utel neces
sities of the.human t, re, fogatWvltiPmn WH.-rtfl
merit,m Shft phylicad construction and operations, would
teach us the vital importance of frequently asking aid
and guidance at. the hands of One who is all-powerful
and ready to help the deserving, even had w-e no di
vine revelation to enforce the iesson. The fact, that
every man constantly stands in need of divine assist
ance, and can receive this assistance through the
means of prayer, when accompanied by faith, is suffi
cient to convince every one of the necessity of con
tinually pleading at a Throne of Grace, and ot priz
ing very highly this blessed institution of diyine ap
pointment.
Prayer preserves the equilibrium of the mind, by
keeping down the stronger passions, and by shutting
Out the deadening effects of worldly cares ; it also
turns the thoughts and desires towards sacred things,
and makes us long for more of the Heavenly enjoyment,
while the pleasures of the world are forgotten and left
behind. It is, therefore, necessary for every one to
resort to prayer, who would increase and grow in re
iligious knowledge ; for when the mind is.wild and rov
ing, nothing can be accpmpfeMied for its improvement.
Let it be sobered by exercise in fervent
prayer, and there is not a doubt but that due applica
tion and study will make us fully grown in grace and
in a knowledge of the Lord. Let us never forget
prayer, which is our great duty and privilege as follow
ers of a Saviour who prayed often, and taught others;
to do the same : let us remember, that—
: .‘‘ Prayer was appointed to convey
The blessings God designs to give.;
Long as they live do Christians pray,
For only while they pray, they live.”
As all religious knowledge is contained in the Scrip
tures of truth, they are, of course, the object upon
which the study and reflections of the mind must turn,
first and last. We must read the bible diligently and
prayerfully; study its teachings constantly and close
ly ; and practice its commands and injunctions cheer
fully and universally; and then we can claim to be in
the sure way of improving our religious knowledge.
There is no danger of our not advancing in heavenly
wisdom under this course; and the more thorough and
constant is our study and practice, the more deep and
abiding will be our knowledge and happiness. As the
material su .advances in his career towards his meridi
an, his warmth increases and his influence extends to
every thing within its reach: so with the Sun of
Righteousness, as he advances in our moral sky to
wards the zenith of Christian perfection, his divine
rays disperse all the mists and clouds of ignorance and
U\EW BFAIU\B.-\ OL. \\ .-XO. VI.
i ji **’ **’ -'■ ■■ ‘■ >!■ “ 1 ■ ■■ ■■ ■ i.* .■ ■ ■ *-* -y, *. I
doubt, while his heavenly Warmth expands and.ele
vates the soul, raising its aspirations to heaven, anj
fixing its whole ‘strength of love upon God and his
cailse.; .
Without attention to the Holy Scrip
tures, there can be litth** arrangement in - refigibus
knowledge, as is satisfactorily shown by referring-to
the hundreds of men. who jSroless Christianity, and yet,
iiig these Ossfflfctjrd. duties, know nothing of
its^aatl teiwpriciesv They -are not what
ft hey should he, by any means; nbt'wlmt they could he
[with great ease and enjoyment fund not. a tithe of what,
st would have them to,-bo, as disciples and follmv
>f him. How can they Ijsfkilil'ul in heavenly wis
dptjj.and-advance in die'aqftsSi<ul of religious know
leq they ueglevt to'apply to the great fountain
blTrqdlral wiSpoin, and drink of its healing waters ?
go.io tiie ieet of Jesus.arid ask him to in
struct their minds in the tilings that pertain to (!*>.,
and there continue till their souls becomS perfect in
all things in the upper world. There is no other way
for the Christian to learn, to grow in grace, and to ad
vance in religious wisdom.
In addition to this reading and studying the Scrip
tures alone, we may learn a vast deal by close atten
tion to the preaching and explanations of the word by
good, intelligent Ministers, who have zeal for Christ
and are apt to teach. One practical sermon a week,
or obe a month, properly studied and meditated upon
in, bur private hours, will do much indeed to improv e
our minds in a knowledge of our duties and wants;
“therefore \ve ought to give the more earnest heed to
the things which we have heard, lest at any lime we
should let them slip.” There are hundreds of men who
neglect tins excellent means of improving their reli
gious knowledge, notwithstanding the to as
fjggjjjjp fl|aaaaalxfi. and’ hear the word'o'f the
97oMV -ana itlieife whole lives exhibit, a barrenness of
Christian fruits, and aw9fit trf ■ md
the service of the Lord: there is no advancement in
the heavenly science, no enjoyment of heavenly bles
sings, and no bright anticipations of heavenly bliss. It
cannot bo supposed that such persons are obedient
Christians, or happy in their position.
The reading of good religious hooks, prepared for
practical uses, is another means of improvement by
no means inconsiderable, nor lightly to be rejected:
indeed, the good derived from this source is too great
to be estimated, and we owe an immense debt of grat
itude to those who have put within our reach sucli
rich treasures of religious knowledge. Hundreds of
individuals have been enabled to rejoice in the hope of
their salvation, after reading and studying such works
as those of Baxter, Bunvan, &c., and Christians have
had their souls strengthened and comforted by feast
ing them upon the rich productions of pious authors.
The plan of sending such books over the country, by
means of Colporteurs, is certainly a wise and benevo
lent arrangement, since it places a prominent means of
improvement in religious, knowledge, within the reach
of the people en masse, and on conditions so moderate
that all can avail themselves of the advantages. This
system should be far more extensively used than it is,
that its blessings might be mace .widely distributed
among the people.
Another means of disseminating religious know
ledge in a convenient and extensive manner, is the cir
culation of good Christian newspapers and periodicals,
which contain generally a large amount of miscellane
ous matter, written in a plain style, on the most impor
tant religious subjects. Here we find a rich variety,
from the settled discourse to the item of every-day
life, and from the philosophical disquisition, to the
matter-of-fact statements of some firm old pillar in the
Christian edifice. The soul of the pious man is often,
very often, made to rejoice over the columns of a news
paper, which tells of the prosperity of Zion, and the
success of our holy religion. No man is prepared to
estimate the value of such publications, but lie who
has once enjoyed their stated visits, and afterwards
been deprived of their advantages.
There are other means of improving our religious
knowledge, but there is not space to speak of them
here. Allusion will be made to them on a future occa
sion. S.
The Sabbath School. —“lt is like a stream which has no
cataracts to astonish us with their magnificent thunder—but
which winds along the tranquil valley, asserting its existence
only in the life and verdure which appear along its course.**