MEETINGS IN CHESANING, MICH.
By M. B. Cornell
Our meetings here have progressed until the house will not hold the people. Last evening over three hundred were crowded in, besides many left, that could not gain admittance. The occasion was one of unusual interest, being a review of Eld. Russell, the Methodist preacher of the place. This Russell is a brother of the one that preached two sermons in Macomb Co., against present truth, to which our well beloved Bro. Cranston (since fallen asleep) made a very able reply. It was his last effort, and it is supposed it was the best one of his life. Bro. Loughborough and I had gone with the tent, and the preacher supposed that he had the field. When Bro. C. announced that he would reply, Eld. R. in utter astonishment said, “I supposed these men had all left the country.” That reply is spoken of by both friends and foes even to this day as a masterpiece. Bro. C. remarked to me that he never was so fully conscious of having especial help from God as at that time. Truth completely triumphed over cunning perversion and sophistry. Some of the positions taken by Eld. Russell (the younger) may not be uninteresting. He had, as the prophet says, “made others to hope that he would confirm the word,” and expectation was on tip-toe, but many were sorely disappointed. He read in a very slow manner the whole of the second chapter of Daniel, and then the whole of Dr. Adam Clarke’s lengthy comments on the chapter. It was very tedious. In his prayer he asked that new light might shine out of the sure word of prophecy, and then tired the people all out with some of A. Clarke’s old darkness. “The stone began to smite the image when the apostles went out to preach, but the greatest blow was given to the image by Constantine’s conversion, when he professed to see a vision of a cross, and the words, ‘By this conquer.’” That which opened the floodgates of error—united Paganism and Christianity—led the church into the wilderness, and laid the corner-stone of Papacy, was honored by the preacher as the work of God. This was “putting darkness for light” in real earnest. RUSSELL. “The kingdom of Christ is set up in the earth; how then can men grow worse and worse till the end?” Reply. Paul teaches that men will grow worse and worse in the last days, therefore the kingdom is not set up. RUSSELL. Read what Dr. Clarke wrote 60 years ago, and remarked, “Our ministers have preached the Advent doctrine.”117 Reply. Methodist preachers once believed and preached the Advent doctrine, but since the doctrine dwelt in Nazareth and has been baptized in unpopularity they fear the reproach, and carefully shun the books of Daniel and Revelation, and the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, lest their hearers should think their sermons tinctured with “Millerism.” Russell. That the world is growing no worse may be known from the circulation of Bibles, liberal cash grants, &c. Reply. How can the Bible bless the people after their eyes have been put out by the clergy assuring them that only collegiates can understand it? If Luther found the Catholics had chained up the Bible, we find that Protestants have chained up the people. For the most part of those who have Bibles are as though they had none. The priest preaches smooth things, and the people perish for lack of knowledge. Russell. Britain is Christian, and all other kingdoms may be. Reply. “Within the last forty years commitments for crimes have increased in England from five to thirty-one thousand, more than six-fold, and four times faster than the increase of population.”—Boston Recorder. “The Christian nations of Europe ‘in time of peace’ are expending $1,000,000,000 annually in preparing for war with each other; while all the Christians of the world, in the largest munificence of their philanthropy, have never given more than 3,000,000 a-year in preparing to preach the gospel to benighted regions of the earth.”—Morning Star. “It is admitted, by all parties, that crimes of the most outrageous and unprecedented character abound through the country, and probably throughout the world, to a degree wholly unparalleled.”—Scientific American. The whole number of inhabitants in the world are put down at about 800,000,000. Under the head of Christians are set down.
Roman Catholics, 80,000,000
Protestants, 70,000,000
Greek Church, 50,000,000
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200,000,000
Jews, 5,000,000
Mohametans, 140,000,000
Pagans, 455,000,000
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600,000,000 According to these statistics only one-fourth of all, even profess Christianity. But what right have men to call the Catholic church Christian? Does not the Bible set it down anti-christ? Can it be Christ and anti-christ at the same time? Catholicism was always only another form of Paganism. And what better is the Greek church? These must go together as anti-christian. Thus we have only 70,000,000 left that can with any consistency claim to be Christians. We see then that less than one-eighth of earth’s population are Christian, even according to their own figures. But, let us take the Bible rule of real Christian character, and go out among the 70,000,000 Protestants, divided up into about 600 sects, and try them by their fruits. Try them since their great moral fall of the last fifteen years, and there would be a reduction to at least another eighth. Stubborn facts show that the world is growing worse and worse. Matthew Henry, whom Dr. Clarke says is “always orthodox,” in his comment on Luke xviii, 6, says: “The world will grow no better, no, not when it is drawing towards its period. Bad it is, and bad it will be, and worst of all just before Christ’s coming.” We expect to remain here another week at least. We are nearly through with the subjects of prophecy, and this evening Bro. Lawrence is to take up the subject of the law of God. Chesaning, Feb. 17, 1861.