Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

CHRISTIAN INDEX AND SOUTH-WESTERN BAPTIST. H VOL 50 -NO. 4. {s3 00 k YiAfU A RELIGIOUS AND FAMILY PAPER, PUBLISHED WEEKLY'IN ATLANTA, GA AT $3.00 PER ANNUM, Invariably in Advance. J. J. TOON, Proprietor. — B . >——— —■ i -* n » The Rose of Sharon. The sweet rose of Sharon t O, beautiful flower I None such ever bloomed in a Persian-tamed bower ; Nor amid all her beauties did Eden disclose An/ flower so sweet as this beautiful rose. On a death-blighted stem, in a night-mantled hour, In Paradise budded this sweet-scented flower ; But its beauty and fragrance were never all known Till on Bethlehem’s plain it was seen fully blown. Beuding angels look down, as they see, with surprise, Tha earth, in its gl»ty, outshining the skies. Many wonders, they sing, have we seen of God » power, But nothing before liko this wonderful flower. Lo! the earth, and the skies, and the mountains, and sea, All eonfess, in this rose, Heaven’s great mystery; And a choir from heaven hastes down on glad wing, Its wonders to sea and its praises to sing. As the siok and the dying inhale its perfume, On the cheek of death glows immortality’s bloom; And its odors, perfuming the caverns of death, Wake, e’en iu the grave, immortality's breath. O, sweet rose of Sharon 1 O, thou previous flower 1 Breathe on me, sweet rose, in my dying hour. When helpless and wan I am sinkiag in death. O, bathe, then, my soul with thy odorous breath I O, may I then feel, when I’m fainting and sinking, And passing away, that my spirit is drinking,- As I breathe out my soul, in my last par.ing sigh,— In thy odors, sweet rose, the perfume of the sky And when my sealed vision no longer shall see Thee, dripping with mercy, on dark Calvary, Awaked by tby breath may I open my eyes, Tby beauty and glory to see in the skies. W.H. J. Waduboro, N. G., Jan. !•, 1811. Visit the Unregenerate. Pastors should do this. It is true that the members of our church are perpetually scold ing if you do not visit them, and this kind of selfishness must not be allowed to interfere with your attention to the unbelieving. You do not preach exclusively to Christians : do not confine your personal intercourse to them. By visiting them you conciliate them ; you open the sympathies of your heart and qualify yourselves for preaching to them, and you cultivate the soil which is to supply your church with new material. All Christians should discharge this duty. It will tend to make your faith praetioal, to stifle your finding fault of your pastor’s appa rent neglect of you, to convince the world of the sincerity aod worth of your religion, and, iD a multitude of way s, to increase vour use fulness. If we would be like Jesus, let us learn to value, to address, and to work for the salva tion of single souls. Gimbj.. "Watchman, What of the Night!’’ In the Index of January 4th, appears an article withtheabove heading,signed, “H onoof the Alabama editors; presenting views which, in our judgment, cannot be Seriptu rally maintained. Hear him: ‘‘Accepting the theory that the Pope is the ‘ Man of Sin,’ the ‘Beast,’ the ‘ Mother of Harlots,’ drunk en with the bloodStof Saints; and that ‘Mo hammedanism’ tsf the ‘false prophet’ of Revelation; let look at thsse tw<> powers tne ligiit of recent • vents) a* well as- A 'limpending complications.’’ We would be glad to know what ‘Beast’ is meant by the writer, whether the first of the 13th chap.of Rev., which John saw “coming up out of thesva,” or the second, of the same chap., which he saw “coming up out of the earth," or the scarlet ‘Beast,’ of the 17th chap., upon which the woman was seated, and which “come up out of the abyss" It is clear that they are not identical in origin or destiny. The first and last are commonly regarded the symbols of the heads of civil got eminent. The ‘Mother of Harlots’ is declared to be: ‘Babylon the Great,’ the ‘Great City,” which must be the symbol of the “ Catholic Hier archies,” including, perhaps, the idea of their nationalization. This is according to the view, that the civil rulers and the peoples are presented under other symbols, and the law that, “ When the symbol and that which it symbolizes differ from each other, the cor respondence between the representative and that which it represents, still extends to their chief parts; and the general elements or parts of the symbol denote corresponding parts in that which is symbolized.” Is the Pope the Man of Sin ? We believe it is easy to show that such is not the fact. The inspired description given of the former, ia II Thess., 2nd chap., does not fit the Pope. The apostacy —“-falling away,” in whieh the Man of Sin is to be ‘ revealed ,’ has not yet transpired. Many have occurred, but in this all others culminate. Its plaoe is immediate ly before the ‘ coming ’ of Christ. The Pope in succession, has lived through the twelve hundred and sixty years , and still Christ has not come. There are strosg probabilities that we are “sweeping within the gates” of that eventful period. It cannot be claimed ;that the Pope has ever ventured upon more —if so much —than equality with God. The Man of Sin “opposes and exalts himself idbove all that is called God, or that is wor shipped, so that he sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” This has never been done by the Pope, and he has multiplied objects and beings of worship. None can fail to see the points of difference. The Man of Sin rejects Christ openly, usurps the prerogatives of God, and monopolizes the homage which is due alone to God. No such state of things has ever occurred in the Christian era. He is to be destroyed by Christ, when He shall be “ revealed in flam ing fire.” This has never been true,' uor is it likely to be so of the present Pope, who will soon pass away by “course of nature.” The doming 5 of Christ is not a “spiritual” one, as, probably, “H.” holds, but an actual, per xonal, visible coming; which truth was estab'. lished in our replies to brother Hillver last year, and of which any ©ne may satisfy him self who' will take pains to investigate the subject. It may be conceded that the Pope comes in the “ power of Satan,” but it is not true that “all power and signs and lying wonders" are his accompaniments, as they are to be of the 4 Coming' of the Man of Sin. It is evident that Mohammedanism cannot be the 4 false propnet.’ He is a “ live” being, and must continue his existence until Christ oonaes again. Mahomet has been dead more than a thousand years, aud has had no sue cessor. We observe, furthermore, that there is an intimacy and oneness of purpose between the ‘Beast’ —which is, doubtless, the one which came up out of the earth —and its im> age; has never been true of the Pope and Mahomet —or the Catholics and Moham medans; like Jews and Samaritans, they have had no dealings save those of bitterness, persecution and death. We heartily agree with “H.” in that the “finger-boards of recent events point in a direction calculated to awaken the liveliest solicitudes of the Christian worldbut we do not believe the time has come for that “ spiritual enlargement of Zion” for which ‘H.’ is looking; and we are assured that those who expect present in strumentalities to subdue the world unto Mes siah, and cause the knowledge of His glory to fill the earth, as the waters cover the sea, are doomed to disappointment! The incentives to spread the gospel are: obedience to the command of Christ, and that it may be preached as a witness, as well as the salvation of the elect, for whom Paul says he endured all things. More than this, no one has Scrip tural reasons to expect, until He whose right it is, shall come. Geo. F. Cooper. Amerieue, Ga., Jan. 12, 1871. “ The Cup which my Father hath Given Me, Shall I not Drink it?” We are apt to imagine that the ills we are called on to endure, are more than we are able to bear. Not very tong since, the wri ter felt so overwhelmed with the troubles and perplexities with which he was surround ed, that he knew not what to do. While thus almost in despair, the idea occurred to him, that he would open the New Testament and read the chapter that he might chance to open at, to see if he could find anything that would give him any direction or consolation in his deep distress. He opened the book at the chapter containing the words quoted above, and after having read the chapter through, his mind fastened on these words as a message from Jesus, counselling resignation and courage'in the time of his great sorrow and distress. Again, not very many weeks afterwards, in a similar slate of distress, he tried the same experiment, and opened at the chapter commencing, “And He spake a par able unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint.” Once more he felt that this was exactly in point. He was about to despair, about to faint, and now he wa9 reminded that Jesus had spoken a parable for the benefit of just such as he was. He knew all our weaknesses, and pro vided instruction for every time of need. Faith. The Bible Among the People. In the Index and Baptist of January 4th, there are some “ Facts and Queries on the subject of the Bible among the People.” The writer of that article, Rev. F. R. Goulding, Roswell, Ga., invites readers to ponder hut thoughts and publish them'in some paper, and send a copy to him. The “ Fa2ts" he pre sents, too truly represent the actual state of things. The Bible, earth’s richest treasure and heaven’s most precious gift, is not read as much and as generally as it should be. Notwithstanding the fact that its pages, illu mined by “ the true light,” have found their way into every section of our country, and into almost every household, yet heathenish darkness reigns extensively. Thousands who have the precious words cannot read them. Thousands who can read them do not and will not. This is indeed a sad, sad thought, that so many thousands are ignorant of God’s will to man, as revealed in His written word! With such facts staring us, thd f; ‘ J query, *■ What measures can be devised lo remedy this state of things?” assumes an importance lecond to none in magnitude. Under “ a brief statement of some of the plans already thought of,” "brother Goulding mentions live ways in which the Bible has been and may be read to the thousands who do not know of the preciolis truths it oontains. The sixth plan p. opossd, whieh seems to be designed to organize the other five, is as fol lows: “ahaquestion hisraked, whether V. m4y Am- be tc U>e iand with a not work of union Bible reading associations in the spirit of the American Bible Society, and co extensive with its affiliations, which shall appoint readers, and provide moans for bringing the Bible into ooutact with the minds of the people?” In this proposition there seems to be Jive propositions,—l. The utility of Bible reading associations as a net work all over the land. 2. These associations to be union. 3. This to be done in the spirit of the American Bible Society, (which spirit is, I suppose, to put the word of God into the hands of every body;) and, 4, for this purpose to provide readers and other necessary means. 5. These associations to be “co-extensive with” either the A. B. Society or its spirit, in “ its affilia tions.” (This helps to understand what is meant by union.) We have no comment to make, just here, on propositions 1,3 and 4. But ty Baptists who have the true charity, and not the spuri ous charity that so much boasts itself, a few words with reference to proposition 2. This is to be a union association, and those Bap tists who feel disposed to act in this matter, have reasons, I presume, for acting in union with others. But it might be well enough to consider what are the objections to such asso ciations beijre forming them. We therefore ask you to carefully examine the following objections to this particular union before en- tering it. 1. There is no necessity for Baptists to enter such a union. Are they so deficient in talent as to be unable to conduct their own enterprises, and to be reduced to the necessity of inviting others to assist them ? That Bap tist who is prepared to admit this, will hardly be found. Are they so wanting in energy as to be unable to do such a work ? Whoever will, let him admit his deficiency in this re speot, and seek medicine among those who have it. Are they pecuniarily unable to pros ecute such a work? The Baptists of the United States are worth many millions of dollars. Have they not enough of the love of God in their hearts to prompt them to seek the salvation of sir.aers by reading His word to them ? Let the deficieat ones speak out, and be first to enter a union which can inspire them. Are Baptists so deficient in all these things as to be unable to do for themselves ? Hardly. Where, then, is the common sense of seeking a union that is unnecessary ? 2. There is nothing to be gained by such a union with others. Error may gain by a union with truth, but truth never gains by a union with error. Since error is always prof ited by such unions with truth, it is always calling for them. Let that Baptist who de sires to profit the cause of error, respond to such calls; and let that Baptist who is pre pared to admit that he is the errorist, call for such unions. Not only is there no necessity for such unions, and nothing gained by them, but 3. There is lost to truth the advantage of influ ence. Every good work accomplishes some thing. Those who do the work, gain an in fluence over those on whom they have wrought, in proportion to the merit of the work done. The reading of the Scriptures is a good work. If this work is done with thou sands of souls bsr the church as such, it will give her an influence over them ; if done by a society, that will gain an influence; if by those who hold both truth and error, they will gain an influence. Baptists believe they alone, hold the whole truth. They have no right to Surrender the advantage of influence for the whole truth, by sharing that influence with those who hold error. Such surrender is made in alt such unions as is proposed. “ But,” says some good brother, “ shall we let the world do without the Bible rather than form such union reading societies?” To sensible men, it is pitiful to see with what contemptible arguments men will try to jus tify their inconsistencies. After what has been said at the outset, and under objection ‘l, to union, this question is simply a miser able sophistry by which to excuse a guilty FRANKLIN PRINTING HOUSE, ATLANTA, GA., THURSDAY, JANUARY 26,1671. oonscience. There is a great want in our land. That want muit be supplied by the reading of the Scriptures to the people. Baptists have the talent, energy, money, and enough of the love of God in their hearts to prompt thsm to action. Then let us have our own reading associations. If it is thought to be the beat plan, let each pastor organize his church into reading committees and assign them their respective wards, and the work will be done. By this method, whatever ad vantage is to be gained in influence, will be secured for the church of Christ who holds the whole truth. If it is thought best to have a general organization, as a Bible reading as sociation, let Baptists have their own. It is our privilege to do it, and an imperative duty. The advantage of influence for truth will not then be weakened by sharing it. with those who hold error. If our objecting breth ren would work as hard lor such Baptist or ganizations as they do for union ones, our en terprises would succeed much better than they do. This is why Protestants succeed so well. They work for their own institutions, and then, in addition to that, prevail on half way holders of the truth to compromise it with them, and work for them, thus bidding them God speed,” and “sharing their errors.” “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” J. M. Robbrtsqn. Seminary 3. C. Comments on Preachers. The use of tobacco is worse than the wear ing of gold : one, in the end, may save much money, the other will consume much. The minute exposure of the faults of other preach ers, is far worse than both of these practices. Troup. The Free Church of England. I have been waiting for some months to see in some of your letters from England, where it would most naturally appear, a notice of the Free Church of England. In default of this interesting intelligence at first hand, I will give your readers such items as have reached me from various sources. The Eighth Annual Report of the Free Church pLEngland, presented to the Convention as sembled in London, Juno 29, 1870, furnishes most of the facts and figures. Disgusted with the helplessness of Estab lished Church to deliver itself from Ritualism on the one hand and Infidelity on the other, twenty-three congregations have associated themselves as an independent body, retaining to a great extent their Episcopal character, but eschewing prelacy. The Bishop-presi dent is Rev. B. Price, of Ilfracombe. I’hey publish a Magazine, a Hymn-book, and a revised Book of Common Prayer, and Church Catechism. Their service is liturgical. They thus state their object: “ The object of the Free Church of England is not to interfere with the labors of any Evangelical Protestant dommunity, whether established or non established, but to introduce the gospel of Christ into those parishes in which the clergy, by excessive ritualism and departure from the faith, are leading the people to R >me, and to assert the fight of the laity in all matters effecting the agency and work of the Church, especially where the laity are suffering, either from an undue #r arbitrary authority of the clergy, not to engage in religious controversy, jut to conduct tft» public services- of tae <)hurch with a pMfe liturtry, in accordance with the doctrines of the Reformation ; thus affording to the families of Christian England, in the parishes where needed, the opportuni ty of worshipping God according to their own views of consecration and obedience to the Word of God.” The catholicity of this young, but vigor ous and growing body, is worthy of notice : “ There were many reasons which determined the title: The Free Church of England. It will be sufficient to mention two. The latter part of it declared the movement to be es sentially one with the Church of England, and the former part of it published its liber ty —liberty in the principle of its confedera tion—liberty in the conduct of its public services—and liberty in its action for the spread of the gospel. The assumption of this noble title is justified by the fact that we are free—free to go into any parish and preach the gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ—free to use a revised Book of Prayer—free to unite the laity with the cler gy in the government and work of the Church —free of Slate support and control —free to interchange services with the clergy of all evangelical denominations —and free to hold communion with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs aDd ours.” In 1849 Rev. James Shore, a minister of the Established Church of England, was thrown into prison, at the instance of the Bishop of Exeter, ostensibly for contempt of court (the Bishop’s) and nonpayment of costs; for the Bishops’ courts are still a ter rible reality there to the olergy, possessed of powers of fine and imprisonment till the costs are paid, which may be for life. Mr. Shore’s real offence was preaching the gospel outside of the Establishment. This aot caused violent excitement. At one of the public meetings a gentleman declared that, “ By God’s help, there should be a Church in which the bishops should not be able to play such pranks.” He kept his word. Several of the free chapels of Lady Huntingdon’s connection have joined the original band, and the Deed Poll and Deed of Declaration was issued in 1863, asserting that: “The Free Church of England is founded on the Bible; the Word of God is the authority to which it makes its last appeal. It adopts, with cer tain exceptions, the Thirty-nine Articles and Rubric of the Church of England. The ex ceptions are included in parentheses, marked in the Book of Common Prayer certified by the Annual Convocation. A minister, in subscribing his name and in using the Litur gy, is at liberty to omit any of these passa ges in parentheses. Its government endeav ors to combine the chief advantages which are offered by the three prevailing forms of ecclesiastical polity, as seen in Episcopaey, Presbytery and Independency. It is at once granted that the gain arising from the combi nation of their advantages is purchased by the loss of those benefits which are the result, in each instanoe, of the adoption of any one form by itself. But the balance contributed by the union of the three is supposed to be greater than could be yielded by any one of the three taken singly. Its membership is as comprehensive as the charity of the gospel; all who have faith in our Lord Jesus Christ —a faith which is proved by keeping his commandments —are admitted to its com munion. In addition to the baptism of chil dren, the Free Churoh of England, following the Rubric, givss full liberty to its ministers to baptize adults by immersion, on a personal profession of their faith. The government of the body is committed to the presbyters and deacons, under their chosen bishops. The presbyters and deacons are the representa tives of the congregations ; the congregations are self governed ; the regulations, or rules of government, are made at the District or Diocesan meetings, and at the General Meet ing or Annual Convocation. But these regu lations must be in accordance wi*h the gen eral principles of the body,”— Dr.B. Patter son, in Jour, dc Mess. Liberty in Baptism. A correspondent of the Advance thinks there is room for some increase of liberty in the OongregatiosaJsßt ministry in respect of baptism: v “ We lose many converts who join Baptist churches, though opposed to close-eommun ion, because ofthe-ssily reluctance of many of our ministers to intlnerse. It is regarded as so remarkable, when ofLour clergy con descend to do this. that it is put into the pa pers forthwith, 'BB-jpt evidence of wonderful liberality. I know not how it is elsewhere, but it is very rare ih the Eastern States for a Congregational preacher to willingly im merse a candidate- / Many will argue by the hour, and send the jinhappy convert an arm fu* of books to before consenting to ad n. iter this sacranjjifit in a manner for which there is certainly Scriptural warrant and ex ample. When these is the- least preference for that mode, the clergy ought to yield their own taste or notiofee of fitness and conve nience. We are nqt to please ourselves in this rite, nor attemp. to d.-agoon candidates into our ways. N<Hjjsbers in our ohurehes are to-day dissatisfied wM-Hhei- baptism, because some minister- coertb& them into accepting hit favorite There is not the least difficulty or hazajd in immersing, at proper seasons of ' I thought it dif ferent till 1 tried, but hare always found it exceedingly easy, if or would I ever debate with a candidate who preferred immersion— no, nor express any opinion or choice in the matter. In theory, we believe in several ways of baptizing: let our practice be as lib eral, and we shall prevent many leaving us whose sympa’hies and views are wholly with us, except that they wish to be immersed.” The writer is wise in dissuading from dis cussion, considering- wy equally the style in wnich the question is liable to be discussed, judging by the past. If a Congregadonalist minister has the least idea of consenting to baptize a candidate according to the “ Scrip tural warrant and example” above referred to, it is better to do so without having en deavored to show that immersion is indecent, as many have asserted; pr that it is unwar ranted by Scripture, gs tbs late Dr. Peters affirmed; or that itr!is a rite borrowed from heathenism, as Dr. Hubbard Winslow inge niously suggested.— f Ex. & Chron. Cons Now. , Now is the time; This Sabbath’s setting suu, May be the signal that tby race is run ; See Jesus, waiting at the heavenly gate, Come now, to-morrow it may be too late. Now is the time; Ere night's dark cartain drop, Thy Maker m»y command tht breath to stop; See Jesus, waitingNat_i.be heavenly gate^ Come now, to-morrow it tnay be too late." Now ia ‘da time; The Spirit’s gentle voice Knocks at thy heart, and pleads, believe, rejoice; See Jesus, waiting at the heavenly gate, Come now, to-morrow it may be too late. Now i# tue time ;• Beyond the narroJW;rare Repentance has no power to save; See Jesus, wailingthe heavenly gate, Come now, to-morrow it may be too late. Now isJjße time; Accept, and tte# V*Alt see The brightness o< tiv- —jjrious Majesty ; See Jesus, heavenly gate, Coras jk»c. for-f.-k-hto. Conyreyatic diIUF- •*”/ The Dying Sermon. Father M., of Massachusetts, who recently died in faith, was once called to the dying bed of an aged infidel qf his acquaintance. The good old man had long prayed for his friend, but his entreaties had ever been met by the infidel’s arguments and scorn. As he ap proached the bed he saw that his mind was in agony. The man confessed himself a sin ner, and that he was not prepared to meet death. Father M. asked him if he had prayed? “ No; I can’t pray. I have continually re fused mercy, and it is now refused me. I have tried to pray, but my lips will not move.” “ Are you willing that I should pray for you, then, and let your heart’s desire go up with my words ?” “No, you cannot pray for file: others have tried it, but could not. You may kneel, but it will be useless.” And the aged saint knelt at the bedside of the agonized sinner. Those lips had daily moved in prayer sos half a- century. That tongue had daily brought the name of sinners before God’s throne ; but, strange to say, all his faculties of speech seemed paralyzed now. Mercy wa9 a word he could not speak; and for the first time, prayer was impossible. “ Now,” said the infidel, as Father M. rose from his knees, “ I want to preach at my own funeral. When you have closed the other parts of the service, I waat-yea to come down from the pulpit and place your two forefin gers on my lips, and say, “ This soul is semled for hell!" “ You must spare me fii&m suoh a conamis sion. It will frighten the people.”, “It is my dying request, and I feel that you must do it. Let others take warning by my death. I cannot excuse you.” So father M., at bis Janeral, after he had finished the sermon, came down from the pul pit, and, approaching laid the tips of his fingers on those marble lips, and, with tears streaming from his eyes, stated the man’s dying request, and pronouned the words: “Thlß SOtfL IS SEALER FOB HELL !” 0, my reader, whethe. Christian or not, be admonished. If your peace is not made with God, re member that your soul is following that infi dei’s, and will ere long be sealed. Your lips can move in prayer now. The time may come when this, the greatest of all earthly privileges, will be in vain. Christian brother, remember that souls—the souls of your friends, relatives and neighbors—are daily going down to hell; and no small share of responsibility is lying at your door. May God help us to feel the importance of that in fidel’s sermon ! —Christian Observer. A Jewel of a Cherch Member.—A church debt often prompts persons to remove their membership from the organization, but the Evangel of San Francisco tells of a brother who is about to join the Second Baptist church in that city because it is in debt. He pro poses to assume the interest, one hundred dol lars per month, on the debt during the com ing year. An original and practical reason for joining a church. A Strange Scruple. —George Muller, of Bristol, has always refused to sit for his like ness. On one occasion a successful attempt was made without his knowledge; but, on hearing of it Mr. Mtiller entreated that it might be given up to him, and it was de stroyed. Scripture Authority. —lt is a Received maxim of Biblical criticism— li Scriptura negat ■ quod non notatf— the Scripture denies what it does not affirm—and, in practice, forbids, as ordinances, what it does not command or require. To depart from this rule would break down every barrier of authority, and ultimately obliterate every distinction be tween the church and the world. An Ancient Revival. In A.D. 387 there was a revolt at Antioch, and the inhabitants were thrown into great distress in consequence. Their trials were blessed to them. The eloquent Chrysostom, who was preaching there, thus described the change: “ How often we have entreated the worldly to abandon the theatre! and yet they continued to run to these immoral places and to these satanic meetings, in opposition to the services of the church of God. On one side was to be heard the singing of psalms; and on the other, savage cries. But now the orchestra is silent, and the circus is deserted. Impure songs are no longer heard on our streets. Our churches are full; every one prays to God; the whole city is become a church. It is a great thing to see the affairs of this life, public and private, take a second ary place, and to hear nothing spoken of, at table, in the streets, and at other places of meeting, but the law and the word of the Lord.” A Curious Legend. When Adam was far advanced iu years, and at the point of death, he sent his son to the angel Michael, who kept the gate of Par adise, to pray for the oil of mercy so that he could be healed. The angel answered that it could not be fifty-five hun dred years, but he gave Seth a branch of the tree of which Adam had eaten, bidding him plant it on Mount Lebanon, and that when it bore fruit his father should be healed. Seth planted the branch on his father’s grave; it took root and grew, and from »t were made Aaron’s rod, and Moses’ staff, with which he struck the rock and sweetened the waters of Marah. It also formed the pole on which the brazen serpent was lifted, and the ark of the testimony. At last it came into the hands of Solomou, who used it in building his palace, but it continually resisted the efforts of the build ers to adjust it. Now it was too long, and then again too short. The builders being angry, then threw it iuto a marsh so that it might serve as a bridge. The Queen of She ba would qpt walk upon it, but adored it, and told Solomon that upon it should be suspend ed the man through whose death the kingdom should be destroyed. Solomon then had it buried deep in the ground, where afterward the pool of Bethsaida was dug, and from the virtues of this tree healing properties were imparted to the wa ters. After it had been buried three hundred years, it rose to the surface of the water, aud the Jews took it and made of it the cross of our Saviour.— The Cross in Legend Poetry and Art. Strength of Character. Strength of character consists of two things, —power of will and power of self-restraint, ft requires two things, therefore, for its exist ence, —strong feelings and strong command over them. Now, it is here we make a great mistake; we mistake strong feelings for strong character. A man who bears ail be fore him, before whose frown domestics trem ble, and whose bursts of fury make the chil dren of the household quake,—because he has his will übqyed, and his own way in all things, we call him a strong man. The truth L <hat h.e is a weak jnan ; it is his passions [hat are strong? he t’hat is mastered by them is weak. You must measure the strength of a man by the power of the feelings he sub dues; not by the power of those which sub due him. And hence composure is very often the highest result of strength. Did we never see a man receive a flagrant insult, and ouly grow a little pale, and then reply quiet lv ? That is a man spiritually strong. Or did we ever see a man in anguish stand as if carved out of solid rock, mastering himself? Or one bearing a hopeless daily trial remain silent, and never tell the world what cankered his home peace ? That is strength. He who, with strong passions, remains chaste ; he who, keenly sensitive, with many powers of indig nation in him, can be provoked and yet re strain himself and forgive,—these are the strong men, the spiritual heroes. — F. W. Robertson. How to Touch Men. In a broker’s office on Broad street, two years ago, we heard a broker, notorious for speculative tendencies, and successful cunning in his trade, speak of hearing Mr. Beecher for years as his preacher and pastor, and said that all the illustrious orator's rebuke of mon ey-making, “sharp practices,” etc., pleased him, but never moved him, but that he was made to feel vary meanly one, and was per manently impressed by Mr. Beecher’s de scription of a noble, unselfish character clos ing an earthly career and entering heaven. As he portrayed that unselfish aud self-deny ing life, the good accomplished, the loss the world sustained, the sweet consciousness of doing right, and the delightful assurance that God is well pleased, etc., the broker said the contrast with his own life was such as to overpower him for the time. The scathing rebukes often given, and justly, too, failed to accomplish what an exhibition of solid virtue did. Truth. Truth is God’s baptism on the hills. First, it is like dew-drops silently descending through a crowd of mist and vapor to kiss the petals of some drooping flower. Then it is a little pool, gathered in some tiny basin in a fra ternal embrace of atoms. Then it is a rill, that goes cutting its channel trough the green moss, and down the sloping hillside, hastening to the meeting of the waters below. Then it is a stream hurrying over precipices and down cascade rocks, turning the great wheel of manufacture, grinding the grain and working the spindles and shuttles of man. Then it is the river, slowly rolling onward through the mighty channel, upon which great barges rock, and the paddles of the steamboats beat. And then—then it is the broad sweep of the ocean, on which is borne from land to land, the products of the indus try of the entire world. And that’s the way truth comes, and that’s the way truth acts. Rich and Poor Side by SiDE.-r-The State Street Baptist Society, at Springfield, Mass., locates the regular attendants of the church by lot, and takes the subscriptions afterward, thus giving the humblest member a chanoe for the most eligible pew. Each one is asked to give as the Lord has prospered him. Thus broadcloth and corduroy sit side by side, and the rustle of silk is sometimes drowned by the sweep of bran-new calico. The Moravians. —The Moravian Missions the past year included 293 male and female missionaries, with 35,099 baptized adults, and 23,288 baptized children. There are sixteen mission provinces, and ninety-seven stations and out-stations. The total of persons under instruction is 60 751, and the total of Euro pean and native laborers is 3,390. The largest number of adherents is at Surinam, where there are 24,156, in the West Indies and Barbadoes, there are some 35,000, in Africa, some 8,000, some 1,700 in Green land, some LO7O in Labrador, among the N. A. Indians, 349, in Australia, 68, and in Thi bet, 9; expenditures, 109,432 thalers, exclu sive of the Surinam and Labrador Missions. Life-Conflict with Self. Luther, in his day, said some things which may be characterized, not only as quaint, but as queer, and yet always, even in this most uncouth style, gave utterauce to solid truth. “ Every man has a devil in hirr as big as a cow,” was one of this class of sayings. Not withstanding this spice of the ridiculous, the truth that there is an evil side in men, so long as they are in their present very partially sanctified state, cannot be gainsaid. it was Luther’s suggestion, no doubt, which made old John Berridge say substantially the same thing. It is related of him, (the Chris tian at Work says,’) “ that he had a number of pictures of different ministers round his room and a looking-glass in a frame to match. He would often take a friend into the room and say, ‘ That is Calvin,’ ‘ That is John Bun yan;’ and when he took him to the looking glass, he would add, ‘ And that is the devil.’ ‘ Why,’ the friend would say, ‘ it is myself.’ ‘ Ah !’ said he, ‘there is a devil in us all.’” John Berridge knew whereof he affirmed. Any man who Jooks into his own heart will find enough to convince him that there are uncrueifled affections lingering there, like the remains of the Canaanites, who haunted Mt. Zion. He need not look at the envy, the pride, the passion, ill-nature and-malice of his neighbor, in order to be persuaded of this: he can see the devil in them, no doubt, but, if he will look closely enough, he can find one nearer home. To cast out this evil spirit is the lifec-on test which begins with the first believing look at the cross of Christ. The life of faith is a conflict which ends only with the death of this body of sin ; and every believer wiho knows himself and the plague of his own heart, will cry often as Paul did, “ O wretched man ! O wretched man !— Chris. Intel." Dr. Manning on Infant Baptism. Dr. James Manning, in a letter to llev. John Berridge, an Episcopal clergyman ol London, points out the inconsistency of infant baptism with Protestant principles. We make two extracts : “ You say that you have no doubt that in fant baptism is attended with the same bles sing qow that infant-circumcision was former ly. Both the ordinances are of God’s appoint ment, etc. Till now, I find you producing plain Scripture warrant fur the glorious doc trines you advance. And must we only rely upon the Doctor’s bare word for the truth of its last assertion ? What shall I say, then, to that voice I hear from Heaven, This is my beloved Son, hear ye him, and that, too, in the presence of Moses and Elias? Pray, Doctor, have me excused till you point me to the page where this great prophet authorises you to say this, i have carefully examined the dispensatory, but can find no such prescrip tion between the lids of it. You uek why Christian children may not be received into the church’s fold by baptism, as were th* Jewish by circumcision. Answer: The for mer was by God’s special appointment, but not the latter. Purely, then, wide is the dis ference in their case. To say nothing is said to forbid tnem, is not sufficient to a truly Christian Protestant doctor; for if it is nee essary, totidem verbis, tor the Scripture to for bid everything practised under the name of Christianity, which is, notwithstanding, con trary to the true genius of the gospel, ii would require a Bible ten times as large as Dr. Gill’s Exposition of it. And then what should we field preachers and the recruiting sergeants of the country do? But pray, D >c t r, is baptism a moral precept, or an institu tion purely positive? if the latter, why need we wreck and torture our brains to find a rea son for either mode or subjects, time or place, or anything further than what the New Tes tament simply informs us concerning it, as there is the only place where we should look for it? Or why need we be distressed how little children should be brought to Christ, while he has not seen fit to teach us the way in wh ; ch it should be done?” “ But I will leave you to compare these passages yourself, without further insisting on their inconsistency, and come to the der nier resort That no harm can possibly arise from baptizing an infant. Stop, Doctor, stop; these expressions are very strong, —I fear much too strong. For did not the Doctor say, page 222, ‘That much people, who are stran gers to the work of regeneration, suppose the new birth is only their baptism, and that ev ery one is|born again who is baptized 1 ?’ And is it strange they should think so when they hear thanks returned to God on its perfor mance, that it is so by the doctors appointed to that service? Surely, to lead such multi tudes into error in such an important article as that of regeneration, cannot be such a harmless thing, especially if we believe our Savior’s account of it. (John iii: 3.) Besides, it makes great doctors contradict themselves when they write or talk about the covenants. If I was one of those doctors, I should think this was some harm. But, most of all, it is invading the kingly office of the Great Re deemer; for I can see no reason why the merits of saints may not be mingled with the merits of Christ to save the church, as the laws or ordinances of men with those of Christ to rule and govern it. Shall we, like Uzzah, not trust the Lord wholly with his ark, but must have a meddling finger? I must men tion one more evil which arises from baptising infants, which is this: The practice con strains those servants of God who prac tice it often to wrest and explain away the plain, obvious sense of Scripture to vindicate it; especially to give such representations of the covenant of grace as mars its glory, and encourages the opposers of the glorious doc trines of grace in rejecting the pure gospel of Jesus Christ. This has often grieved my heart, and in no case more than in reading your book, where the glorious Redeemer is exalted in his office, nature and grace, and the pride of man stained, until you get hampered, as I think, with infant baptism, which neither we nor our fathers are able to prove was ever the mind of Christ.” Parisian Irreligion. —The London cor respondent of the Presbyterian, quotes the following utterances of the Red Republicans in Pans, as illustrating how hostile they show themselves to religion: “All the churches should be closed against religious services, and should be converted into granaries, meet ing places for clubs, and other revolutionary purposes. All the hospitals should be purged of priests. They should be arrested, armed and placed under fire, in front of the patients, in the most perilous positions. We would confer upon them their noblest mission—that of becoming martyrs. They will go to heaven, and that will be their reward. We who do not believe in it desire that they should die before us. Let them serve as breastworks to fathers of families, and that will be the only time when they have been good for any thing.” The Grace op Giving. —The Presbyterian calculates that since 1851, the growth of de nominational liberality has been three times as great as its growth in membership. The average of congregational contributions to each comtnunicaut was, in 1851, $5.02 ; aud in 1870, $14.37. Embracing ail the money columns, congregational and benevolent, the average to each communicant was, in 1851, $6.95; in 1870, $18.90. {s3 00 1 \m. 1 WHOLE NO. ‘2524 “What is That to Thee?” Toiling in my barren vineyard, fainting ’neath the pain, Os the summer beat, and labor, pressing heart and brain, I beheld my vines decayieg; none had bloom or fruit, And the seed my tears had watered, died for lack of root. Like the mountain, doomed and fatal, on whose desert crest Neither rain nor dew deeeeadeth, seemed my ground unblest. Then I heard the Master saying, “ What is that to tbeef If no harvest bless thy labor, leave thy work with met” Lord,” I cried, “ my brother's vineyard fair as Eden stands, Even now the purple clusters fill bis loaded*hands. On his ground the rain, descending, cheers his care sad toil, And the sunshine warms and quickens all the fertile soil. Why should I, of all thy servants, weep and toil in vaint On the vines whioh I have planted, tend the blessed rain I” Then again the Master answered, “ What is that to theeT Is not mins the barren vineyard and tha fruitless trees Though from all thy field no blossoms grace thy weary hand, Sow thy seed without despairing o’er ths sterile land. Know that in thfwgfpnd hereafter, which before tbet lies, <r "” Thou shalt see the bud and blossoms which ths earth denies. All thy toil shall be remembered, and thy crown shall be Tears which love transmutes to jewels, Works whioh follow thee ” —Mr*. V. G. Ramsey. How Long mast I Give 1 Till the gospel is preached in all nations, and every soul under heaven has heard the glad tidings of salvation; till every impor tant field has its evangelical minister; till every community of tolerable magnitude has its church and its stated worship, its Sabbath and its sat ctuary privileges; till the fires of sin are everywhere extinguished, and the light of holiness is everywhere kindled; till every idol is abolished, and eVery dweller on earth is made a worshipper of the living God; till every father beoomes a high pri- et in his household, offering the daily sacrifice of prayer and praise, and every mother teaches her infant charge to lisp with their earliest prattle the name of Jesus; till human selfish ness gives place to divine benevolence; till civilization, culture and refinement are substi tuted for barbarism, debasement and crime; till wars and rumors of wars cease, and all men dwell together in love ; till the Lord Jesus Christ sits enthroned, as King of all the earth ; and every knee bows to his sway. Such is the period of your enlistment, and you must fulfil it, unless you previously fall on the field. Prayers that Miss their Mark. Mr. Bingham, in his sketch of the Sandwich Glands, says of Queen Kahumann, that after ner conversion she manifested great solicitude for some of the neighboring islands, still in a state of deplorable ignoranoe and degradation. In order to test her knowledge of what the gospel requires, he said to her, Suppose you offer up earnest prayers to God in their be half, but put forth no effort to carry tH*. g-m --pel to them, do you think such prayers will avail anything? After a moment’s reflection, *he replied, such prayers will mi-s their mark.” How many Christians, of long stand ing, show thernaeives less wi-e, practically, than this convert from heathenism ! How many pray for the evangelization of the world, and neither labor, nor give, to achieve it! Are prayers that “ ruins their mark,” true prayers? Can there be true prayer without giving and laboring, where opportu nity invites? Minor Points of Ministerial Character. If I look among the members of my own profession, as 1 glance over a pastorate of some forty years, much of the time having had a wide range of observation, I do know that, when parishiouers come seeking pastors, talent is not the only thing they ask for, nor is it oftentimes, by any means, the most im portant thing they want. They desire a pas tor who is gentle, pleasant, gentlemanly, kind-hearted. 1 look back now over more than one-third of a century, with very dis tinct recollections of a large multitude of ministers of our own communion. 1 remem ber those who, thirty years ago, were sub stantially equal in the elements of a good Christian character, all of them above suspi cion, all of them honest in their purposes ; and yet some of them have fallen back, while others have gone steadily forward ; and I de clare to you that, so far as I have been able to see, in many oases the principal ground of failure on one part and success on the other has been in these lighter elements of charac ter. Although these things may not come up even to the dignity of minor morals, I submit to you that this is one of the cases where it does well to tithe even mint, anise and cumin. If by attention to these things we can make ourselves more useful, it is well worth while to attend to them. Os course, a minister does not forfeit his soul because he does not k»ow how to enter and leave a parlor; he has not committed a mortal sin because he can not make a graceful bow; he has not of fended agains>t the Holy Ghost because he always wears a sombre oouutenauce instead of a smiling face. But if these things have so much to do with our suooess as ministers of Christ, I submit it to you if our text teaches no other lesson but that of curtesy, it is well worth our learning. —Bishop Ames. A Noble Example —There is in Pesth, Hungary, a Jew named Dr. Hasenfield, whose fidelity to the Jewish law excites great sur- " prise. He is having a fine mansion built at ’ the expense of SIOO,OOO, and forbids that any 2 work shall be done on the Jewish Sabbath. '* As the workmen are thus compelled to rest > on a day when they would be willing to work,*' he pays them their regular wages for that q day, at a total additional expense of $2,000, , which'he pays for the luxury of a good con science. When will Christians show them-.,* selves as willing to keep the precepts of the New Testament at a sacrifice? .. . Pastoral Support. —Ten years ago, says the Congregaiionalist, the highest salary paid : ? to any Trinitarian Congregational clergy man in Massachusetts was $2 400 Last year, twenty eight churches paid $2,500; nineteen t churches, $3,000 ; twelve chinch, s, $3 500; i five churches, $4,000; one church, $4,500; -• and three churches, $5,000. Not altogether a Blunder. —Bishop ( Clarkson, in the Spirit of Missions, tells the • following story of himself: “Not long since, in a frontier town in Nebraska, appeared the following notice: ‘Elder Clarkson, of the Episcopal Society, will preach in the school house this evening, and administer the Apos tate Right of Conformation."’ _ - - ,i ■ J-'i. Marriage.- —Thomas Fuller quaintly say-f t.M “They that marry ancient (elderly) peopQy;: merely in expectation to bury them, ha- got themselves in hopes that some one will com* and cut the halter.” /