p. 343 | Religious Miscellany by Editor

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, California · Sep 2, 1875

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 1, No. 43.

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Religious Miscellany.

By Editor

The late Emperor Ferdinand of Austria has left by his will to the pope $6,000,000, which has been already paid.

The Baptists have been holding a grand out-door meeting at Martha's Vineyard. But they are rather shy about calling it a camp-meeting.

The Pittsburg Commercial says, the clergymen of Towanda have struck—that is, they have combined to have but one service on Sunday for the next six months.

A young Norwegian, who was converted at one of the earlier meetings held by Messrs. Moody and Sankey in England, has returned to Norway and started a Sunday-school, the first ever opened in the northern part of that country.

The National Sunday-school Assembly at Fair Point, Chautauqua County, N. Y., has been well attended the past week. Last Sunday 3,000 people attended the model Sunday-school exercises. Mr. J. E. Searle Jr. was superintendent, and was assisted by forty teachers.

One of the disadvantages of dying and being in two places at the same time is shown in the case of the late Judge Edmunds. Mrs. Tappan, in London, and Mrs. Conant, in Boston, simultaneously delivered addresses by the deceased Judge, which were so utterly conflicting in substance that the ardent believer is compelled to admit that somebody lies. That somebody is the inevitable evil spirit.

The report that the Roman Catholic authorities of Prussia have signified their readiness to obey the new law in relation to the administration of church property is confirmed. The law commits the management of the church property in each parish to a council elected by the parishioners. It will go into operation next autumn. The Cathedral Chapter of Fulda have signified their submission, as also has the Bishop of Breslau.

A missionary writing from Nellore, India, says:—"The population we reach by our various agencies is about six and a half millions. As to the progress already made, in our mission alone we have over 4,000 communicants, and about 20,000 nominal Christians. We have 45 native preachers, as many more teachers, 10 colporteurs, 4 stations and missionaries, and 40 or 50 out stations, and at one of our stations a theological seminary for training preachers with 50 students."

Mr. Gladstone has published another pamphlet, in which he discusses another new question relative to the papacy, which formed the subject of his pamphlet on Vaticanism. The present publication takes the same grounds against the papacy and predicts trouble in the future, both in Great Britain and on the Continent from that source. The pamphlet declares that the papacy will seize the first opportunity through bloodshed to maintain its rule, and will, if necessary, even plunge the world into war. The new document of the ex-premier is much discussed and is calculated to revive the religious conflict raised by his first effort on this subject.

The Rocky Mountain Methodist Conference closed August 16, with the reading and adoption of a report on the condition of Utah affairs.

The report denounces in severe terms the Mormon theocracy; declares it hostile to the American Government and its institutions; gives extracts from sermons delivered in the Mormon Tabernacle during 1856 and 1857 by Brigham Young counseling murder and blood atonement; holds that Brigham Young is responsible for the Mountain Meadow massacre and many other murders committed in Utah since its settlement by the Mormons; demands free schools, a free ballot, and an amended jury law; calls upon the press and churches of the country to keep this matter before the people till they shall speak with a voice that politicians and legislators will heed.

The third Sunday in May witnessed a grand meeting of Catholics, in Cincinnati. From 10,000 to 15,000 from other towns were welcomed by speeches from the Mayor, and the sheriff of Hamilton county. In the afternoon a procession was formed, ten thousand persons marching in line through the principal streets, accompanied by thirty brass bands and followed by Archbishop Purcell and other bishops in carriages. Thus we see that Sunday is regarded by them as it was when it first began to usurp the place of God's holy Sabbath, as a holiday, a day for festivals, processions, and pleasure.

The proposed new Spanish Constitution provides that nobody shall be molested on Spanish territory for religious opinions, or in the exercise of their respective worships so long as the respect due to Christian morality is paid. Nevertheless, other public ceremonies or demonstrations than those of the State religion are prohibited. The amount of this is that the Spanish government will go as far in proscribing the Protestant churches as it dares to go. Any attempt to imprison or execute Protestants on account of their religious belief and worship would bring Bismarck's guns to bear upon them. They, therefore, consent to permit them to worship in private.

The apostate condition of the Jews is thus set forth by the Jewish Messenger:—

"Nor is it as regards public worship neglected that our admonition is directed. Surveying the condition of many Jewish dwellings, what is there within those mansions, in which our good Father has given us the power to dwell, to denote our gratitude? Nothing Jewish is found; no distinction between what is permitted or prohibited; nothing garnered for future happiness, but all for the short-lived present; no morning nor evening prayer, no example for children—nothing but a shell from which the kernel of Judaism has been lost."

The Romanists complain bitterly that the Catholics are taxed for the support of schools that they cannot control, and speak boldly of the time when, by their control of political parties, they shall collect the taxes, control the schools, and compel the Protestants to support the Romanist schools, as well as their own. Said the Rt. Rev. Dr. McQuaid, in an address not long since: "I stand here and say that unless we bring this thing of the school taxes to the ballot box, we do not deserve the name of Catholics. It may not be necessary to bring it to the ballot box; we may, by making a demand, effect a compromise; we may obtain a platform on which we can stand. Politicians will come to us."

The Jews now, as in the days of Christ, are still resisting their claim to God's favor upon the piety of their ancient forefathers. "We be the children of Abraham." Thus the Jewish Messenger says:—

"We were the chosen of God, and we remain the chosen of God; for the Eternal Omniscient God changes not! He, who could see into the Future selected us from all the nations as His Ministers; His Prophets; as the Conservators of His Word; the promulgators of Divine Truth.—The Almighty vouchsafed to reveal Himself to us. He gave to us His laws for the good of the World. They are eternal; without them society could not exist."

"Remember that ours is not a religion of yesterday. Forget not that it was the religion of Isaac, and Jacob; Moses, Elijah, and David! True, God changes not, but men do; and hence it is no evidence that we are holy simply because our fathers were."