Religious Miscellany by Dudley Marvin Canright

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, Cal. · Jul 1, 1875

Religious Miscellany.

By Dudley Marvin Canright

—The Congregational Church at Salt Lake City celebrated the first anniversary of its re-organization, on May 23. Other denominations are also gaining a foothold there.

TUCSON, June 8.—The Citizen is informed that Brigham Young is anxious to establish a colony in Sonora, his great desire being to get away from the influence of the public school system of the United States. Mormonism, like Catholicism, flourishes the best in ignorance and darkness.

—One of the Eddy family at Chittenden, Vt., has accepted the challenge of the medium detective, Chapman, to exhibit their materializations before a disinterested Committee, and proposing that each side shall stake $1,000 on the result. Did God's prophets ever bet that they could work miracles?

—Cardinal McCloskey, the other day, administered the rite of confirmation to twenty-nine young ladies, and after the ceremony, was presented with a superb diamond cross, said to be valued at $20,000. A great sacrifice to be a Cardinal! Poor fellow, what a reward he will have in the kingdom!

—The Christian Leader asserts that Universalism has advanced more in New York and Brooklyn during the last seven years, than in forty years previous. The number of churches, it says, has about doubled, and feeble mission churches have grown strong.

—Rev. J. G. Wood has written a book to prove that the lower animals have immortal souls as well as men. This is the natural result of the heathen doctrine of immortality.

—Good for our S. D. Baptist brethren who in one of their recent Associations passed the following:— Resolved, That the use of tobacco, as a vast and growing evil, is too pernicious, poisonous, and expensive to be indulged in by the people of God, whose example should ever and in all things agree with the divine direction, “Shun all appearance of evil,” and “whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”

—The regular Sunday attendance upon Protestant churches is becoming very small generally. I have taken pains to attend the leading churches both in our large cities and villages, and I find by actual count, that from twenty to seventy is the average attendance; with one hundred to two hundred in the most popular churches. Nine-tenths of the people seldom go to church.

—We are sorry to hear of another new colony for Sabbath-keepers. That does not look like the missionary spirit; like work. So the disciples tried to colonize in Jerusalem till the Lord let their nest be stirred up by persecution; then “they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word.” Acts 8:4.

—Of the 700,000 children of school age in Missouri, only 100,000 attend Sunday-schools.

FOREIGN.

—Six hundred thousand dollars have been raised in Vienna to start a newspaper, which shall not have a Jew on its staff, the newspapers of that city, generally, being in charge of that sect.

—Six hundred and sixty-eight Mennonites, from Prussia, are on their way to Quebec by the steamship Moravian.

—The American Jews have appointed a committee to locate a colony for Jewish farmers. But whoever saw a Jew working on a farm? It will be a novel project.

—Major Cole, of Chicago, is producing almost as great surprise in London, in his children’s revival meetings, as Moody and Sankey in preaching to adults. Fully 10,000 children were present in Bow Hall, London, on last Monday, and the singing is described as wonderful.

—Religious services in London are almost continuous throughout the day, and the enthusiasm is unabated. A body of police is required to clear the way for each departing congregation through the crowds assembled for admission to the succeeding meeting.

—The English revisers of the New Testament held their fiftieth session May 10. They furnished revision to the tenth verse of the tenth chapter of Romans.

THE POPE’S AGE.—On May 13th, 1875, the Pope was eighty-three years of age. He has been Pope several years longer than any other one of the two hundred and sixty-three who have filled the Pontifical chair. It is said the Catholics have a tradition that the Pope who holds his office over twenty-five years will be the last. The present Pope is the only one who has reigned twenty-five years. He has now been at the head of the church nearly thirty years. His age forbids his remaining much longer.

—Protestantism just now is making quite a stir in Turkey. The native organs oppose it earnestly. The Turkish Government has so far improved its tone toward the American work as to appoint one of the brethren upon the board of public instruction. The government also ignores having ever forbidden the printing of the Turkish Scriptures, so that the work is now going on.

D. M. C.