p. 221 | Health and Temperance by J. O. Corliss

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Apr 2, 1885

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 11, No. 14.

Health and Temperance.

By J. O. Corliss

An Enemy to Christianity.

THE pastor of a certain church, reporting the condition of his congregation, through the columns of his denominational paper, said:—

“I have 267 members in full connection, and 100 probationers on my charge. Sixty-seven of them use tobacco, and on making inquiry of each one, I find they have spent for that article in a year, $845. The entire membership, with the aid of the outsiders, gave the pastor and presiding elder, conference claimants, missions, church extension, and freedmen, $841. One member confessed he had during the year expended $91 for tobacco! His contributions stood thus: Missions, $1; conference claimants, $1. Another acknowledged he had spent $145 for tobacco! His contributions for church extension during this term were 66 cents.”

Just think of it! A church giving a little more than $2.25 a year per member for gospel work, while a portion of the same congregation average nearly $13.00 apiece for a villainous narcotic. The whole church of 367 members pay $841 for Christianity, while less than one-fifth of their number pay $845 for tobacco! Yes, and according to the acknowledgments of some of the members, their contributions to the Lord's work decreased in proportion as their tobacco indulgence increased. Thus, one man who paid $91.00 for tobacco during the year, gave to the cause $2.00, while another, who indulged in the use of the filthy stuff to the amount of $145, contributed to the church sixty-six cents!

Yet in the face of all this, some will persistently claim that it is no harm for a Christian to use tobacco. Suppose the amount paid for tobacco by the members of the church just referred to, had been put into the church treasury, the church funds would have been doubled, more extensive missionary operations might have been maintained, and who will say that those members would not have been as well, or better off without the poisonous weed? In that case, Christianity was robbed of the opportunity to do what it might, because of the waste of means for a useless article. In this light, tobacco is an enemy to the cause of God.

But the above is not an isolated case. Tobacco users are almost invariably selfish. It matters not that they are professed followers of Christ; they will have their tobacco, and they will use it, even though the heathen sit in darkness by reason of their selfishness. What do such care for others' salvation? Or if they have very little religious element about them, what do they care even for the comfort or discomfort of others. To illustrate: While riding with my family on the cars in Iowa a few years ago, a representative of the rising generation came in and took a seat nearly opposite to us. He was soon puffing vigorously at a vile cigar. My wife, being in delicate health, was soon overcome by its nauseating fumes. When I ventured to remind the young man that his tobacco smoke was quite offensive to the ladies, and requested him to seek the smoking-car to enjoy the remainder of his cigar, a more indignant person I never saw. He said I had grossly insulted him, and he demanded satisfaction. All he wanted, he said, was to get me out alone and he would fix me. I appealed to the conductor, and was troubled no more with him or other smokers during the day's journey.

This is a fair sample of what the use of tobacco will do. To start with, this young man was probably no worse than the average; but his habit had so enslaved him that his manly qualities were nearly gone, and he was transformed into a selfish, brutal creature. Step by step he had gone to that point where his sensibilities were blunted, and he thus placed himself where it was nearly impossible for him to appreciate those things which pertain to refinement and Christianity. Tobacco does the same thing in a measure for every one who falls under its power, and is, therefore, an enemy to Christianity. J. O. CORLISS.