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Jerusalem My Happy Home.
e A few verses of this hymn, modernized, are familiar
to most persons, but the complete poemie little known.
It was composed by a prisoner in the tower of London,
during a time of religious persecution. The original
manuscript, signed “F. It. 8.,” >8 now in the British
Museum.
Hierusalem, my bappie home!
When shall I come to thee?
When shall my sorrows have an end ?
Tby joys when shall I see?
0 bappie harbor of the saints!
0 sweete and pleasant soyle!
In thee noe sorrow may be found,
Noe grief, noe care, ooe toyle.
In thee noe sickness may be seene,
Noe hurt, noe ache, no sore;
There is noe death, nor ugly dole,
But Life for evermore.
Noe dampish mist is seene in thee,
Noe colde nor darksome night;
There everie soul shines as the sun ,
There God himselfe gives light.
There lust aud lucre cannot dwell;
There envy bears no sway ;
There is noe hunger, heate, nor colde,
* But pleasure everie way.
Uierusalem! Hierusalem!
God grant I once may see
The endless joys, and of the same
Partaker aye may be!
r Thy walls are made of precious stones;
v Thy bulwarks diamonds square;
Th v gates are of right orient pearle,
Exceedinge rich and rare.
Thy turretes and thy pinnacles
With carbuncles doe shine;
Thy verrie streetes are payed with gould,
fcSurpassinge cleare and fine.
Tby houses are of yvorie,
Thy windows crystal cleare;
Thy tyles are made of beaten gould
Ob God, that I wore there!
Within thy gates doth nothings come
That is not passinge cleane;
Noe spider’s web, noe dirt, noe dust,
Noe flltbe may there be seene.
Ah! my sweet home, Hierusalem,
Would God I were in thee!
Would God my woes were at an end,
Thy joys that I might see!
Thy saints are crowned with glorie great,
r l hey see God face to face;
They triumph still, they still rejoice;
Most happie is their case.
We that are here in banishment
Continually doe moane;
We sigh and sobbe, we weepe and waile,
Perpetuallie we groane.
Our sweete is mixed with bitter gaule,
Our pleasure is but paine;
Our joyes scarce last the looking on,
Our sorrows still remaine.
But there they lire in such delight,
Such pleasure aud such play,
As that to them a thousand yeares
Doth seeme as yesterday.
Thv vineyardes and thy orchardes are
Most beautiful aud faire:
Full furnished with trees and fruits,
Exceedinge riche and rare.
There cinnamon, there sugar grow,
There narde and balme abound :
What tongue can telle, or heart containe,
The joys that there are found ?
Quyt through the streetes, with silver sound,
The flood of life doth flowe;
Upon whose baukes, on every syde,
The wood of life doth growe.
There trees for evermore bear fruite, .
And evermore doe springe ;
There evermore the angels sit,
And evermore do singe.
Hierusalem, my happie home,
Would God I were in thee!
Would God my woes were at an end,
Thy joys that I might see!
Obsequies in honor of General Lee, at Mer
cer University.
When the tidings of that death which has called
forth the grief of a whole people, reached Pen
field a desire was felt, both by the Faculty and
the students of the University, to give expression,
at once, to their own feelings of bereavement and
sorrow. The exercises of the University were
therefore suspended for the day; and a more pub
lic and solemn expression of the general grief was
deferred, until the return of the President, who
happened to be absent, in the discharge of official
business. Immediately after the announcement
of the suspension of the usual exercises, the stu
dents assembled in the chapel, and the following
resolutions of sorrow, and of condolence with the
students of Washington College, were adopted:
Whereas, Whenever it pleases Almighty God
to remove from earth a great and good man, it is
natural and becoming that those whom the dis
pensation touches most nearly should grieve, even
while they submit to the Divine will; and where
as, it is their duty, also, to acknowledge the
worth of such an example, and to honor it by a
reverent and loving recollection; therefore be it
Resolved, That we, the students of Mercer
University, have heard, with profound sorrow, of
the death of General Robert E. Lee; and that, as
Southern boys, we mingle our tears with those of
the bereaved South, over the illustrious Defender
of the “ Lost Cause.”
Resolved, That in the death of General Lee,
the world has lost one of the grandest examples
of patriotic devotion and exalted heroism, and
one of t;e most beautiful examples of private
virtue, ever displayed before the eyes of men.
Resolved' That the cause of Southern education
has lost in the death of General Lee, one of its
ablest and most distinguished supporters; and
that we recognize, in the position which he held
as presiding officer of a sister College, an addi
tional reason for our sorrow at his death.
Resolved, That we hereby offer to the students
of Washington College, our fraternal sympathy
and condolence for the death of their great and
good President, in whom they have lost both a
Teacher and a Model, and to whose memory
both they and we owe a lasting debt of reverence
and love.
Resolved, That we will wear the usual badge of
mourning, for thirty days.
Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be
sent to the students of Washington College.
John J. Brantly, Jr, )
F. T upper,
C A George, 1 committee.
W. W. Arnold, j
J. W. Cain,
L. G. Render, J
On the return of the President, the chapel pul.
pit was at once clothed with the emblems of
mourning, skillful lingers, prompted by the sym
pathies of full hearts, and guided by a refined
taste, arranged, in graceful folds, the ample drape
ry, which completely covered and concealed the
pulpit. In pleasing contrast with the sombre hue
of the covering, bows and flowing ends of white
material were placed, at such points and inter
vals, as to relieve the whole drapery of any ap
pearance of heaviness, and to assist the eye in
following the outlines of the suspended portions.
A beautiful wreath of natural immortelles , placed
in the centre, completed the contrast of hue, and
supplied one of symbol, also.
A meeting of the Faculty was then called, at
which the following resolutions were adopted:
Whereas, When it pleases Almighty God to
remove from the world a man of exalted character
and distinguished usefulness, it is the duty of
those upon whom the loss has fallen, gratefully to
acknowledge the Divine goodness in having fa
vored them with so rare an example of human
excellence, and humbly and devoutly to acquiesce
in its withdrawal; therefore
Resolved, That in having bestowed upon the
world such a man as General Robert E. Lee, in
whom were united the grandest qualities of hu
man character, God has conferred a signal bless
ing upon mankind ; and that we thankfully adore
the providence which gave him to the South, as
its leader and bulwark in the hour of peril; as an
example of fortitude and dignified submission, in
' the time of failure and adversity; and as a pat
tern of gentler virtues and Christian grace, in the
I walks of private life.
Resolved, That the death of General Robert E.
Lee has affected us with the sorrow which a sense
of personal bereavement excites; and that we
mourn for him, as children for a father.
Resolved , That we hereby tender to the Facul
ty of Washington College our warmest sympathy
in the irreparable loss which they have sustained
by the death of their illustrious presiding officer.
Resolved , That, on Tuesday, the 18th inst., the
regular exercises of this University be suspended,
and that the day be consecrated to the memory of
General Robert E. Lee; that, at 10J- o’clock, on
that day, funeral obsequies be observed in the
College chapel, and that the bell be tolled, as an
expression of public grief, from 12 o’clock, noon,
to sunset.
Resolved , That as a further token of respect to
the memory of the glorious and lamented Dead,
we will bear the usual badge of mourning, and
that the chapel pulpit shall continue clothed in
mourning, for the remainder of the present term.
Resolved, That the Secretary be instructed to
send a copy of these resolutions to the Faculty at
Washington College.
In accordance with the resolution, consecrating
Tuesday, the 18th instant, to the memory of Gen.
Lee, and providing for commemorative services,
the Faculty, the students and the citizens assem
bled in the chapel, at 10J o’clock, on that day,
when, after a solemn requiem, sung by the choir,
and reading of the Scriptures by Rev. Dr. Brantly,
Prof, of Belles Lettres, a discourse, commemora
tive of the life and character of Gen. Lee, was de
livered by Rev. Dr. Tucker, President of the Uni
versity.
The distinguished speaker prefaced his remarks
by saying, that if it should be objected that it was
unbecoming and improper for a minister of the
Gospel of Peace to speak in terms of praise of a
soldier —of one who had become renowned as a
man of war, —he would justify himself, from the
commission under which he exercised his minis
terial office, lie would read from the Sacred Ora
cles, two narratives, in which it would be seen
that the very highest eulogiutn had been pro
nounced upon two soldiers —in one case by Him
who “ spake as never man spake,” and in the
other, by one of the inspired historians. lie then
read the account of our Lord’s interview with the
Centurion, in the Bth chapter of Matthew, and
the account respecting the Centurion Cornelius,
in the 10th chapter of the Acts. He then spoke
of Gen. Lee as a soldier, giving him the very
highest rank among the greatest captains of the
world; and said, that if Gen. Lee had been a sol
dier only, however distinguished, this was not the
place to speak of him in that connection. But he
was more than the greatest soldier of this or of
any age ; and then went on to speak of the exalted
traits of character which distinguished General
Lee, and dwelt upon the fact, that these were
crowned and made glorious by the lowly graces
of the Christian. But Ido not propose to give an
analysis, even, of the discourse, much less to re
port it at length. It is sufficient to say that il was
thoughtful, earnest, patriotic, and thoroughly ap
preciative of the character of General Lee, and was
delivered with more than the speaker’s usual force
and impressiveness.
After the discourse, prayer was offered by Dr.
Brantly, then a requiem was sung by the choir ;
after which, the benediction was pronounced, and,
in a few minutes, the chapel bell began its solemn
tolling, which was continued, at intervals of one
minute, until sunset. This was not the least im
pressive part of the solemnities of the day; and
few persons could have heard those measured and
mournful tones without being subdued into sym
pathy with the spirit of the occasion.
“ Os all sounds of all bells,” says Charles Lamb,
“ most solemn and touching is the peal which
rings out the Old Year.” But yet more “solemn
and touching” is the knell which announces the
departure of an immortal spirit from the scene of
its brief sojourn on earth to the shores of eter
nity. Few persons are so thoughtful—few yield
themselves so readily to the influences which turn
the current of thought and feeling back upon the
past, as to hear in “ the peal which rings out the
Old Year,” as Lamb did, a summons “to the gath
ering -up of the mind to a concentration of ail the
images which have been diffused over the past
twelvemonth —all I have done or suffered, per
formed or neglected, in that regretted tune.” To
most persons, that “ solemn peal” is exhilarating
rather than subduing; inspires gaiety, rather than
“ tender regrets" and serious rnusings, and sends
the mind forward to dwell, in pleased contempla
tion, upon the brighter prospects which hope
spreads out before it. But in the sounds of tfie
tolling bell, there is a power, not easily resisted,
which awakes the thoughtless to reflection ; a
voice, not easily disregarded, which summons the
careless spirit to look back with earnest scrutiny
upon the past, and to contemplate the solemn fu
ture. They tell us, not merely that a certain por
tion of the time, which shall begin afresh on the
morrow, has passed away; they mark, not merely
one more stage in a current which is still flowing;
but they tell of time which has come to an ever
lasting end; of a current which has ceased its
flow forever; and there is no lightest sound of
hope in them. They proclaim that a life like ours
has closed upon earth ; that one around whom
were the same temporal interests, hopes, and com
forts—the same sweet and endearing connex
ions as those which now surround us, has left
them forever. The most careless ear is arrested;
and however thoughtless we may be, for a time
at least, we are compelled to give place to solemn
reflections; our minds are turned away from the
living scene around us to contemplate death and
its dread issues.
Always affecting, under whatever circumstances
it may be heard, there is a peculiar power in the
sound of the tolling bell, when heard, at this au
tumnal season, amid the scenes of nature. At this
“ melancholy season of the year,” the signs of de
cay and death are all around us. Nature, in obe
dience to the Divine voice, is crying to us, “ All
flesh is grass, and all the goodiiness thereof is as
the flower of the field : the grass withereth, the
flower fadeth, because the Spirit of the Lord blow
eth upon it. Surely the people is grass.” Every
chilling wind that moans through the waning
wood, whispers this lesson; every wandering
stream,choked with the relics offormer luuxriance
and beauty, proclaims it in melancholy murmurs;
and it is painted in sombre hues on every part of
the landscane. And as we tread the paths of the
fading groves, where rustling heaps of fallen leaves
speak of that mysterious passing away which is
the doom of every mortal, the mournful tones of
the tolling bell fall upon the ear, and enforce the
lessons of Nature, in her decay, with a touching,
soul-subduing pathos, which not even the most
obdurate can resist.
But if the tolling bell speaks only of death, —
if there is no voice of hope in its iron tones, —
this is not the only lesson which this fading, dying
Nature teaches: in her voice there is hope. Even
in her decay and death, she speaks to us of “ the
things that are unseen,” and that die not. It is
in hope, in confidence, that she commits to the
bosom of the faithful earth, and to the kindly in
fluences of the unchanging heavens, her vernal
germs—the dying trust of plant and tree ; and
in doing so, she teaches us that just as her living
forms pass, through death, to anew and more
vigorous life, so it is only through the same pro
cess of decay and death that the perishable forms
of humanity can “ put on incorruption” and the
life eternal. Lucretius.
“ Free Religion.” —E. C. Towne has start
ed in Chicago a monthly, the Examiner, to
advocate what he styles “ Christianity with
out Christisin.” His definition of his pur
pose includes these two points : “ To root up
the theological heathenism—total depravity,
divine wrath, damnation, and blood atone
ment, which choke Christian truth and ortho
dox teaching. To expel from true Christian
religion every form of Jesuism, or regard for
Jesus as more than a mere man, and all Bib
lioiatry, or regard for the Bible as more than
a collection of mere humau writings.”
Ministerial Delusion. —That minister is
under a great delusion who thinks that he
ought to do all the work himself. His great
work is to set the church at work. His ser
mons, his conversations, his parish plans,
should all look with a steady purpose in that
direction.
The English Bishops. —A correspondent
of the Church Record says that “ the learned
Bishops are not sound, and the sound Bishops
are not learned,”
FRANKLIN PRINTING HOUSE, ATLANTA, GA., THURSDAY, NOV EMBER 8, 1870. Is3oo A YEAR.}
Circular Letter.
To the Churches of Stone Mountain Associa
tion :
Your Association, at its late session, was
requested, by one of the churches, to “ re
commend some plan of systematic benefi
cence;” and having considered the matter,
recommended that the Envelope System be
adopted by the churches. The Association
further resolved, “ that the Moderator be in
structed to address a Circular Letter to the
churches, [through the Index and Baptist,]
urging the adoption of tl/e proposed plan.”
In performing this duty, 1 will call your
attention, Ist, to the fact that the Scriptures
plainly and forcibly enjoin the duty of giving
to the support of Gud’s cause, —of giving
statedly, and in proportion to our ability.
Vide Ephs. iv: 28; II Cor. ix: 5 —12;
Prov. xxviii: 27; 1 Pet. iv: 11; Acts xx:
35; Prov. xix: 17. To the truths taught in
these texts, and others of like import, I affec
tionately and earnestly invite your attention.
Is it not important that we follow some plan
—the best one that we can devise—that the
work of “ bringing in the tithes ” may go
forward steadily, uniformly, systematically ;
that our prayers and our alms may, together,
go up before the Lord? Aye, is it not time
that we look upon giving, and love it as an
act of worship, and make haste to offer to the
Lord the first fruits of all our increase ?
But to the plan :
To the lack of some system in giving, the
smallness of our contributions is, no doubt,
in great measure, to be attributed.
The Envelope System is simply carrying
out the plan set forth in 1 Cor. xvi: 1,2.
The details of the plan as worked elsewhere,
may be briefly stated. A package of envel
ops, 52 in a package, is provided for each con
tributor. Each envelope has printed upon it
the name of the church and general objects
of contributions. Each one is dated so a3 to
correspond with the 52 Lord’s days in the
year, is numbered, and has a place for the
contributor's name. Each contributor enclo
ses his or her weekly offering, specifying, if
desirable, the particular object for which the
contribution is intended, and hands over, at
the appointed time, to the appointed receiver,
the sealed envelope. The Church Treasurer,
in a suitable book, keeps a correct record of
contributors and their offerings. The dea
cons, with the pastor, form a Disbursing Com
mittee, appropriating the funds according to
their discretion, or order of the church, as
may be determined. Collectors may be ap
pointed, to aid deacons in gathering up arrears
from delinquents.
In specially recommending this plan, 1 may
say, it has been a success wherever it has
been tried, among various denominations of
Christians.
Again, it commends itself, in that it con
templates srnalloffenngs, frequently, and while
the yearly aggregate may be considerable,
the amount is paid with little trouble; far
easier than to pay all at once, or in quarterly
installments. It seeks a contribution from all
the worshippers, and on every Lord’s day.
It leaves the matter of giving wholly with
the individual and his God, at the time of ac
tual offering.
It secures, as well as any plan, secrecy—
no one seeing or knowing what his neighbor
gives.
It reminds oue every Lord’s day*, to put
something into the Lord’s treasury, which re
minder we all need.
It dispenses entirely with agents, special
high-pressure efforts; it appeals for money
in behalf of the benevolent enterprises of the
denomination, and lastly, it has, as I have
already said, from experience, proved to work
well, and accomplish more in raising funds
for missions, the poor, and other interests of
the church, than any other plan.
It must be borne in mind, however, that
no plan will work of itself. To be success
ful, it must be diligently attended to and kept
at work. To you, brethren of Stone Moun
tain Association, and all others who approve,
it is earnestly recommended. Try it, prayer
fully, persistently, patiently, remembering
that ourselves, and all we call our own, be
longs to God. He will bless the effort thus
made to glorify Him. His frown will rest
on those who fail to “ honor Him with their
substance.” As our brethren of the Associ
ation have recommended this plan, let every
pastor and deacon present the matter to the
churches, let every church try the plan, and
then, from experience, w T e can discuss its mer
its or demerits a year hence, when we meet
to “ set in order things pertaining to our
Zion.” Wm. Henry Strickland, Mod.
Stone Mountain, Ga., Oct. 25, 1870.
Young Men’s Christian Associations.
The church, as organized in our own de
nomination, is of Divine institution ; and, as
Baptists, we regard it as the only earthly or
ganization recognized, and the constitution of
which is defined in Holy Scripture. That
combinations for missionary and other de
signs, outside of and auxiliary to the church,
though temporary, perhaps, in their existence,
are generally admitted as permissible by the
spirit of the gospel, and for which the Divine
Record furnishes examples.
Associations of young men, from different
cnurches and denominations, for the develop
ment o f religious gifts and home missionary
work, are of recent origin, but have become
very numerous and efficient in our own coun
try and in Europe. Why they are not nu
merous in the South, I am unable to say.
That they are, properly conducted, capable of
great good, and aids to the churches, I have
no doubt; yet at the same time it must be
admitted, unless their action and aims are re
strained within due bounds, their influence
and effects are injurious to the churches.
Having had considerable experience and ob
servation of the working of these associations,
I have arrived at several conclusions as to
their good or evil tendencies, some of which
I will state.
One, and probably the great source of the
unhappy results of the operations of these
associations, must be attributed to the mod
ern tendency of the religious world to multi
ply machinery for moral and religious work.
We cannot be content with the simple forms
which the Scriptures supply,—and which
simplicity all experience, whether in worldly
or religious effort, teaches, is most conducive
to power and success, —but we must multiply
complex combinations for every phase of
moral and religious enterprise. We are apt
to forget that the motive power, if we may
so style it, for all the machinery of thqse so
cieties, if they are to succeed at all, is solely
to be found in the churches, and, reduced to
firßt principles, in the faith and prayers of the
individual membership, working- with the
church, and that the further we get from this
source of power, whatever the machinery by
which we may seek to connect ourselves with
it, the less we can accomplish for Christ. To
illustrate this, take a not uncommon instance
of machinery driven by a steam engine;
where we sometimes see so much gearing at
tached that the whole power of the steam is
exhausted in moving the machinery, leaving
no surplus to accomplish the work for which
all was designed. Now, this natural tenden
cy, unless constantly watched and restrained,
inclines these associations to forgettheir proper
position as aids and subordinates to the
churches, and to interfere with and assume
the legitimate fVork of the churches. Again,
the members of associations are too often led
to regard their work outside of their respec
tive churches, and in connection with the as
sociation, as satisfying the claim of Christian
duty, and remain comparatively silent and
inactive in thi church, forgetting her prior,
and far superim; claims to their services.
But there are ways in which such organi
zations may work to the great spiritual ad
vantage of the younger membership of the
churches and thi general advancement of the
cause of Christ, without infringing upon the
province of the churches. By their means
we become intimate and harmonious
with those of lATier denominations, better in
formed and more liberal in our views of
them. And herein we not only advance our
own spiritual if erests, but the general cause;
for the wmrld “ takes knowledge ” how those
of different names aud faiths harmonize on
the essential points, recognize each other, and
work together the children of one family.
We need noiTTn this work, compromise our
distinctive iinational convictions, but to
feel sufficient confidence in the truth of our
position, to hold our differences in abeyance
until assailed, or a proper opportunity to
promulgate occurs. It must be con
fessed that, as fcnjF’.sits, our good nature has
ofteu been impo#’; J on by indiscreet and un
kind remarks t’j. intimations in common
meetings, rarely, however, in these associa
tions. But whvfMyer we mingle in such com
mon meetings, it’ should be understood that
we are unflinchi; g Baptists, not ashamed of
our convictions ready, when assailed to
defend the faith “once delivered,” and my
own experience teaches that we are never
likely to hear anything that is really offensive.
Perhaps others may differ in their experience.
These associations greatly develop and ex
ercise the intellectual and spiritual power of
those members who need encouragement to
work and exercise their gifts in the social
church meetings, and who are often neglected,
in this respect, -v their pastors. The five
minutes rule, als >, which universally limits
the exercises of the associations, forms in
them the necessary habit for the interest of
meetings, of saying and praying a good deal
in a few words. Associations usually engage
in mission Sabbath school work; but with
many, as with myself, the conviction exists,
that this is the exclusive work of the churches,
and that in this labor every member should
be made to feel i'« a prime duty to engage, so
that the largest fi?ld may be fully cultivated.
But where the association, as some do, con
fine their efforts in this work to canvassing
for scholars, systematically, and directing
them to such spools as the parents prefer,
there is no objection. Yet herein is a legiti
mate branch of work for the church. O.
Atlanta, Oct. 22. i
Something Left Undone.
Labor with W.-a. zeal we will,
Something .till remains undone;
Something uncompleted still
Waits the lising of the sun.
By the bedstle, on the stair,
‘At the tlr. uphold, near the gates,
With its or its prayer,
Like a newkeant it waits—
Waits, and will not go away;
Waits, and will not be gainsaid ;
By the cares ‘f yesterday
Each to-di | j • heavier made.
Till at length it is, or seems,
Greater than our strength can bear:
As the burden of our dreams,
Pressing on us everywhere.
And we stand from day to day,
Like the dwarfs of times gone by,
Who, as northern legends say,
On their shoulders held the sky.
— Longfellow,
Baptism of Tables.
In your last number (2509) it is stated that
tables is not found in either the Sinaitic or
Vatican MSS. But the word in our common
Greek Testaments, is klinos, a couch, from
klino, to recl+ne, to lie down, as did the ori
entals at meals. If table were meant, it
would be trapezia , as in Acts vi: 2, “ serve
tables,” not klinos.
But, in Mark vii: 4 and 8; Heb. vi: 2
and 9, 10, the word baptisma —the noun
always used when the Christian ordinance is
indicated—is not employed at all ; but bap
tismos, referring, as Dr. Clarke and others ob
serve, to Jewish ceremonies. The context in
all these places show that the aucient rites
are the subject of conversation ; and hence, in
Mark, we have the Scribes and Pharisees
blaming Jesus that His disciples eat with
defiled, unwashed hands. He charges them,
with adhering to the traditions of men in
washing pots, etc. So in Hebrews, the doc
trine of baptisms, baptismon, not baplismalon,
the word that designates New Testament 1
baptism. Also, in the 9th chapter, we have
the tabernacle and its furniture, with meats
aud drinks, and divers washings and cleans
ings, baptismois, a word employed in Jewish
ceremonies, never in regard to New Testa
ment duties.
Schleusner defines baptismosby three words
only— lotio, purgatio, ablutio, employed in
all the Levitieal purgations. Many learned
interpreters have overlooked the difference in
those two words — baptisma and buptismos.
Even the learned and honest Prof. Stuart,
who, when one in his classes observed that
the Rev. Air. -1 says that baptizo don’t
mean to immentk , answered, “ He don’t know
Greek;” even Me supposed the plural was
used in Heb.f i: 6 to give dignity to the
subjeet—not seeming to perceive the distinc
tion in the words. A. S.
Messengers or Delegates?
Duiingthe discussion of a question in a
Baptist Association some time since, we
heard a speaker say that he was responsible
to his church for his vote on that question, and
that he would certainly incur her censure if
he did not vote in a certain way. In a subse
quent portion of his speech, he remarked that
the assembly of which he was a member
were messengers simply, and not delegates ,
and that he wished the word delegates dropped
from Baptist usage. Now, to our apprehen
sion, either of these propositions may be true,
but both certainly cannot be. If those who
represent the churches in Associations are
messengers simply, not vested with any au
thority, they are not responsible for any vote
they may cast. They are sent merely to re
port upon the condition of their churches, and
to bear such funds as may be entrusted to
their charge for benevolent enterprises. W hen
there is no subject upon which the Associa
tion is competent to legislate, thi3 is the whole
of their functions ; and in such case, they are
messengers only. They may, as a company
of Baptists, express opinions and take votes
on any subject they may choose; they will,
however, be responsible to nobody for such
votes. Nor will there be a constituency
bound by their decisions.
But it may be, and frequently is, the case
that the representatives of churohes in Asso
ciation assembled are both messengers and
delegates. Some of our Associations have
established High Schools. The proper man
agement of these is a matter of interest to
every member, and they expect those whom
they send to the Association to cast their
votes in accordance with their notions of w hat
is proper. The persons thus sent are mes
sengers in a general sense ; they are delegates
in special reference to the school. They are
charged with an authority and are responsible
to the churches that appoint them for its ex
ercise. Suppose, however, that the school is
the property of the Convention, of which the
Association is a constituent, are the represen
tatives of the churches delegates in reference
to this school? Generally, they are not;
sometimes they may be. The management
of the school has been delegated to this Con
vention, and perhaps by it to a Board of Trus
tees. Yet it is delegated only, not transfer
red. The people, whose property the Insti
tution really is, have a right, art, all times, to
give an expression of views in regard to its
management, and when they choose men who
shall give expression to these views through
the Association, these are delegates as well as
messetigers. They have no authority to leg
islate for the church —to say that one shall
do or undo. But they are competent to give
direction to the enterprises in which the As
sociation may be engaged.
We admit that the theory of the Baptists
is repugnant to delegated authority. We hold
to the independence of eaoh individual church,
nor do we apprehend that we can hold this
too tenaciously or guard it too jealously. W e
cannot have it too clearly understood that
when our representatives are delegates, they,
are delegated for a specific purpose, aud that
outside of that they have n-f authority what
ever. Let them never suppose for an instant
that because they can vote about a school or
the establishment of a mission that they there
fore have the right to loose and bind the
churches in matters generally. *
Short Paragraphs.
Our intuitive perception of right and wrong
is a safer guide upon moral questions than
reason. When men begin to cast about for
arguments with which to defend some course
of conduct, we may feel sure that they are
troubled bv a consciousness of having acted
amiss. When we know that we are right,
that conviction may come in a way that we
know not; but it is assuredly not a conclu
sion drawn from a string of syllogisms.
Some people are silly enough to pronounce
a lack of sectarian zeal a virtue, and to call
indifference to articles of faith Catholicity.
Bigotry, we all admit to be bad. But one
may be earnest in his belief without being
bigoted ; and if he be not his be
lief, he had almost as well have none. A
man is not apt to labor very actively for the
advancement of religion who thinks all sects
about equally right.
Os human actions, we may not judge too
harshly ; but when we come to the discussion
of motives, we should be very charitable.
The sophistry of the human intellect is such
that we must not suppose that a man always
means to do wrong because he does wrong.
Much of the wickedness that has been perpe
trated on the earth has been done by men of
good intentions. Dominic doubtless believed
himself to be doing God service when he
conceived and instituted the Inquisition; and
Philip the Second of Spain, the veriest tyrant
that ever lived, who brought misery on a
larger number of his race than any other one
man ever did, died in the assurance that he
had acquitted himself of the task which God
had imposed upotf him.
The great secret of governing is knowing
when and how to say yes and no. Mauy pa
rents allow their children to pass beyond
their control by saying one of these words
and meaning the other, or by uttering it with
a hesitation and uncertainty as if undecided
whichto say. Indecision is always a weak
ness, and it is one which children are very
quick to perceive. One must be determined,
if he would govern even an intant.
Put Yoursflf in llis Place. You may
thereby find out what he will be likely to do
under given circumstances. There is no rule
so safe by which to judge of human motives ;
for He hath fashioned our hearts alike. It
will also make us charitable in our judgments.
We will not —certainly ought not to —censure
harshly conduct in others which would be
ours in like circumstances.
The lessons taught by experience are of lit
tle value for future use. We are seldom, if
ever, placed in precisely similar circumstances
twice in our lives; and unless we were, the
lesson we learn at one time would be little
worth at another. Experience may teach us
general rules; but we must be guided by
common sense in applying them, and perhaps
in every instance of their application, we
have to make some new modification.
A New Sect.
The Methodist publishes an account of a
new sect known as Nazarites, in Hungary,
which is said to have become numerous:
They profess to derive their confession
from the New Testament alone, acknowledg
ing the divine origin of the Old Testament,
but regarding it only as an explanatory aid
for the understanding of the New, or as an
edifying discipline ; they hold God to be one
in essence, but three in person—Father, Son
and Spirit; that He has created all things,
and supports, sustains and governs the world ;
the. Son has redeemed man from sin by death
on the cross; the Holy Spirit sanctifies and
illuminates believers ; that man abused his
freedom and sinned, and has lost his innocence,
holiness and immortality, and become a prey
to death, and only those enjoy the merits of
Christ’s death who conform to his life and
doctrine. Their sacraments are two —bap-
tism and the Lord’s supper—adults only be
ing baptized, and that by immersion by any
male member in good standing, and baptism
being essential to salvation. They have no
ministers, consider marriage a civil ceremony,
recognize no Sabbath —for which they find no
injunction in the New Testament, though they
worship on it for convenience sake—are sin
gularly charitable and moral in their daily
lives, refuse to take oaths or to bear arms,
and take no part in political affairs. f‘ They
consider themselves,” says the journal we
follow, “ the exclusive possessors of God’s
Word and truth, the only perfect expositors
of the Scriptures, and the only true members
of Christ’s kingdom ; they regard all others
as pursuing the fleeting, perishable things of
this world, rejoicing in vanities, and there
fore unable, in their present state, to attain
eternal salvation.” They are strongest in
South Hungary, especially in Szegedin, Tern
esvar, Hold mezo, Vasarhely, and some other
places, and are chiefly from the lower classes
—peasants, tradesmen and mechanics,
The features of this sect are such as have
appeared in numerous instances in the course
of ecclesiastical history,arising from the study
of the Scriptures free from traditional glosses
—with a tendency to extreme views which
a riper study of the gospel corrects.
Church Music.— I The Heraldand Presbyter
of Cincinnati thinks that singing is the reason
why “ the Methodists have become the lead
ing denomination of this country,” while “ the
Friends, who had an earlier and better plant
ing, have dwindled almost into non exist
ence.”
Tact. —We do not so much need scholastic
training in the home missionary as we need
tact, common sense, and a consecrated heart.
Understand me—-tact, which is the knowledge
Os hOXQy
What will yon Do for your Lord ?
Mr. Spurgeon, in an address at Edinburgh,
said : My esteemed brother, who is a very
apostle of Christ, Mr. Oncken, of Hamburg,
in forming Baptist churches in Germany, lays
down, as one of the first questions to be asked
of a person applying for membership, “What
will you do in the service of Jesus Christ ?”
Perhaps the candidate will reply, “ What do
you think I can do ?” and the pastor will say,
“ Something you must do; you can only
become a member of this church by engaging
in some Christian service.” 1 would almost
carry it so far as to say, “ Unless you are laid
aside for illness, you must continue to do
something, or be excommunicated ipso facto
by your doing nothing.” That might be too
extreme a rule; but the spirit of it is right.
If it were a generally understood regulation,
that one of the conditions of Church-mem
bership was service, we might see our churches
rising to a far higher degree of zeal for God
than they have ever yet attained. We know
by experience that the idle part of the church
is that in which sin has strongest hold. If a
farmer should leave one part of his farm un
cultivated, it would be a hot bed for weeds,
and the garlic, the nettle, and the thistle would
from that centre spread all over his estate.
The unworking part of the church, like the
mixed multitude that £nme out ol Egypt, /alls
a lusting, mischief upon the whole
of Israel. In’a human body, if a bone should
become dead, it becomes the origin and seat
of disease. If any gland in the entire system
should cease to produce its proper secretion,
it begins at once to do mischief by gathering
together, or producing, some foul, prurient
matter. Even thus, in the Church, if y r ou
are not serving God, you are hindering His
cause ; if you are not contributing to the pro
gress of the Redeemer’s kingdom, you are a
drag upon its wheels. All Christians must
take their share of holy labor.
Trifling Vexations.
There is a mode of punishment sometimes
used that is said to be exceedingly severe.
The head of the prisoner is secured, and a
tank of water is placed a little above it, so
arranged that the water shall fall on his head
quite steadily, but only a drop at a time. At
hrst, the culprit laughs at the simplicity of
his keepers, but, without noticing it, they
leave him to himself. In a few minutes the
steady dropping becomes annoy ing, and the
man is grave. A little longer, and he is an
gry, then weeps and implores release. If the
punishment is continued long, it is almost sure
to result in madness, so intolerable does it
become.
Dr. Mahan once used this fact to illustrate
the power of “ domestic trials,” as he called
them. But it also illustrates the power of all
the trifling vexations and anoyances that occur
in our daily life. One, we could perhaps bear
with patience, perhaps another; but when
half a dozen come, one after another in the
course, it may be, of a single morning, it
must be a very watchful heart that is not
oveicome by them. It has been said of them
that they are harder to bear than great trials,
and it is true. In bereavement or any great
woe, we are usually able to anticipate the
trial, and the mind is thus fortified against it
These little vexations are the more trying,
because they usually surprise us. How sel
dom is a father angry, or a mother, in a pet,
over a child guilty of some great wrong !
How stfre is one, or both, to reveal a petu
lant and angry spirit at some trifling blunder
of the same child ! Watch, and Ref.
Niggardliness toward “Supplies.”
Alluding to the way in which churches
with vacant pulpits sometimes get a supply
from Sunday to Sunday, a writer in the Evan
gelist says : “ There ought not to be, perhaps
is not, mean chaffering in such matters; but
there is opportunity for it, and opportunity
is a great temptation. A man has a plot of
ground for which he wants seed. He goes
around and collects samples at every store
until he has enough. Not very honest, you
say. But there are congregations that get on
as they think, well, and certainly cheaply
upon samples. If a congregation that would
give a pastor $3,000 per annum gets speci
men preaching at $25 a Sabbath, it clearly
saves money, and gets good preaching.” And
a writer in the Christian Era says: “ Churches
which pay their pastors a salary of SI,OOO or
$2,000, (which is at the rate of S2O or S4O
per week, or per Sabbath,) often pay other
men who preach excellent sermons, —the pro
duct of more than six days of hard study,
only $5, or $lO, or sls, which is at the rate
of only some $250, SSOO, $750 per year.
Now, looking at this merely as a business
transaction, always to be conducted on Chris
tian principles, is it, after all, manly, just,
and in accordance with God’s golden rulv,
which was made as much for ministers as for
other men.”
Infant Baptism. —Rev. Edward M. Goul
burn says : “ The special blessing of infant
baptism is this, that God in it prevents us
(in the old sense of the word ‘ prevents’) an
ticipates us with His grace, anticipates con*
sciousness, anticipates temptation, anticipates
sin, so that when the powers of evil throw up
their approaches to the soul, they find the
Holy Spirit in possession of the fort re s be
fore them. And thus, before one who is bap
tized in Infancy can be soiled by evil, he is
tinctured with good.” He argues that the
shape which the baptismal grace takes in all
men in general, is good desires—esteem for
religious people, the wish to be good and de
vout, the desire to shake off bad habits, etc.,
and these, he says, “ represent the action of
the Holy Spirit upon the soul in virtue of bap
tism.” He says, by way of exhortation to
the impenitent: “Is there any one of you,
however worldly and careless, nay, bad and
vicious he may be, whose stagnant heart is
not from time’to time stirred by an earnest
wish that he were better? Well, even that
wish is a pure breath from heaven, wafted to
you (as it were) across the waters of your
baptism.”
Is there not in such teaching a broad and
stable basis laid for false reliance and fatal
delusion ?
Communion.— ls it not a little remarkable
that we are asked to abandon close commun
ion for our own good ? Baptists are the ones
to be benefitted by the change. So they say.
How kind in our Peaobaptist friends! We
wish we could return the favor; indeed, we
will, by earnestly entreating them to adopt
strict communion. It will be for their good ;
indeed, it will. They say this custom hin
ders our growth, and prevents our fraterniza
tion with Protestant Christianity. Well, we
have grown somewhat, even with this mill
stone about our neck, especially as compared
with those who kindly advise us; and we
should much prefer truth to growth—a right
use of the ordinances to a multiplicity of
communicants. We will venture tho growth,
encouraged by the past.— JJiscox.
Trust In God. —Thomas Shillitoe, an Eng
lish Quaker missionary, who made extensive
tours of benevolence in Europe and America,
said that he wished to become “ like a cork
on the mighty ocean of service ” which his
Master should require of him, “ willing to be
wafted hither and thither as the Spirit of the
Lord should blow upon him.”
WHOLE NO. 2513.
Praise.
Anprels, ye who ne’er can knew
Au*ht that sinks our hearts below,
Mars our music, chains our tongues,
With vour high, immortal powers,
With your harps forever strung,
Praise your glorious Lord and ours.
In this low and grosser air,
All our breath exhales in prayer:
Wants and woes, and hopes and fears,
Still our joyous thanks repress:
In your bright, untroubled spheres,
Ye have but to serve and bless.
Oft, when praises I would bring,
Tears will gush forth as l sing:
Then, the gratitude I feel,
Makes me long for coining days,
When with all an angel’s zeal,
I shall hymn my Saviour’s praise.
Intensely Pedobaptist.
We recently asked a prominent Baptist
minister, who was formerly a member of the
American and Foreign Christian Union , what
he thought of that organization. He replied
with promptness and candor : “ I think they
are more intensely Pedobaptist than the regu
larly organized Presbyterian General Assem
bly ; and I believe it to be so of Union So
cieties generally. The reason is, they feel
restrained in the presence of Baptists, and
their combativeness is aroused.”
Our excellent missionary to the Roman
Catholics ol Mexico, has been
his own proper field, by an agent of the above
named Christian Union! We confess our
regret that Baptists ever give their money to
build up these so-called Union organizations.
Large properties are sometimes bought by
these societies, in part by the money of Bap
tists, and dedicated —to what? To the whole
truth? No. But to only just so much of the
truth as Pedobaptists believe ! Let a Bap
tist enter one of these places and utt*-r his be
lief and joy in the burial of the believer
in baptism, and dwell upon the significance of
the symbol as a type of the burial and res
urrection of Christ, and he would be made to
feel that he was out of order. Can it be right
for Baptists to invest their Lord’s money in
any institution where the Lord’s truth cannot
be freely uttered ? We pause for a reply !
Macedonian and Record.
Protestant Popery.
The Episcopalian thus enlightens the Church
Journal (which had questioned the truth of
certain statements admitted to the former
paper) respecting practices which illustrate,
iu a striking manner, the presence, of Roman
izing germs in the Church as well as in the
prayer-book:
There are full length pictures of Saints—
seven or eight of them, we think —in the par
ish church, of which Rev. Morgan Dix is rec
tor. That church is located in Broadway, at
the head of Wall street, about half an hour’s
easy riding from the office of the Church
Weekly. We trust the editor will now go and
see for himself.
At St. Luke’s, in Hudson street, still nearer
the Church Weekly office, a picture of the
Virgin Mary is conspicuous within the chan
cel, while near by are numerous full-length
pictures, representing not Christ, hut various
other (mere human) beings.
Then, if our contemporary will just cross
over to St. Clements, in Amity street, not more
than a quarter of a mile distant from St.
Luke’s, he will discover, occupying a like
prominent place, above the communion table,
(or, as he would call it, “ the altar,”) full
length likenesses of a man and a woman, one
of whom is supposed to be Mary Magdelene
and the other Saint Joseph.
Pursuing his peregrination a little farther
up town, he will come to that other “high”
place of public worship—the church of the
Annunciation—and there, too, if he is not as
blind as a mole, he will see, within the chan
cel rails, something even more unprotestunt
and unusual than a picture of the Virgin
Mary, in the shape of a marble basso relievo
(a graven image, as it were) representing a
kneeling figure whom the Papists blasphem
ously call “the mother of God,” with angels,
or an angel, and a dove, supposed to typify
the Holy Ghost, saluting her.
Household Baptism.
In Ur. de Pressense’s recent work, “The
Early Days of Christianity,” lie says: "Chris
tian baptism is not t« be received, any more
than faith, by right of inheritance. This is
the great reason why we cannot believe that
it was administered in the apostolic age to
little children. No positive fact sanctioning
the practice can be adduced from the New
Testament; the historical proofs alleged are
in no way conclusive. There is only one case
affording any ground for doubt, and those
who attach more importance to the general
spirit of the new covenant than to an isolated
text, unhesitatingly admit that it is of no force.
Five baptized households are mentioned in the
New Testament. The family of Cornelius
was baptized only after the descent of the
Holy Ghost upon all its members. Acts x:
44, 47. The family of the jailer at Phi I lippi
had heard the preaching of Paul and Silas:
‘ They spake unto him the word of the Lord,
and to all that were in his house.’ Acts xvi:
32. The house then contained no child inca
pable of comprehending the gospel. \Y e
read in Acts xviii: 8, ‘ Crispus believed on
the Lord with all his house.’ St. Paul says
(1 Cor. i : 16) that her baptized the family of
Stephanas : and in the same epistle (xvi: 15)
he mentions that this family was the first
fruits of his ministry in Achaia—a statement
which implies that all its members were con
verted. The single doubtful case is that of
the baptism of the family of Lydia, (Acts
xvi: 15,) but it loses this character when we
connect it with the instances already referred
to. It appears to us evident that the family
of Lydia was the first-fruits of Macedonia, as
the family of Stephanas was of Achaia.”
Is it Your Church ? —Can it be that there
are churches —so called—of which what John
Randolph once said of the Ohio river is true
“frozen up during one-half of the year,and
dried up during the other half ?" Must it not
be true of a church which contributes nothing,
or next to nothing, to the spread of the gos
pel in the world ?
Pulpit Naturalness. Lyman Beecher
said to a theological student: “Thoroughly
master your subject —seek the aid of the
Holy Spirit —and then let nature caper."
EpißCoPacy. —ln the last session of the
Southern Methodist General Conference, Rev.
L. M. Lee, D..D., of Va., said: “It is not
true that the Episcopacy is essential to the
edification of the Church. Pastors can do
their own work.” But of their pastors, Dr.
Watkins, of Miss., said : “Thousands of the
cultivated sons and daughters of Methodism
are driven from her communion and made to
constitute the strength of other denomina
tions, because we subbornly persist in inflict
ing upon them teachers ignorant of books—
ignorant of the properties of life—teachers
who will not study, or who cannot learn.”
The Church. — While Baptist churches
are republican as relates to themselves and
other men, they are absolute monarchies un
der Christ, and it is only by unwavering
maintenance of His enactments as they were
delivered unto us, that the great end of our
existence as churches can be secured. — Can,
Sap.