The Dangers of Religious Power
By Editor
"When George Washington was presented with his little hatchet, his fingers ached to cut something with it. It is admitted that George was a good little boy, and meant no harm by chopping down the cherry tree. It has been so ever since. When power is put into an American parvenu's hands—and we are all parvenus in this country, more or less—his fingers burn to exercise it, and if there is no useful work in sight he is sure to do mischief—and is very liable to anyway. If he has the self-confidence of combined egoism and inexperience, he is irrepressible in his ugliness of purpose." This is just the position we take with reference to the National Reformers. There are very many good people among them. There are many well-meaning persons who are anxious to see laws enacted for the better observance of Sunday. They say that they do not wish to infringe in the least upon the rights of those who keep the seventh day, and we give them credit for honesty of purpose. But they don't know what they would do if they had the power. As the boy who has a brand new, sharp knife, cannot rest content until he has tried its edge, so the man who comes into the possession of power to which he is unaccustomed, must needs test his new toy to see how it works. He may not mean any harm, but power is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an inexperienced person. Keep every semblance of power to persecute for conscience's sake out of the hands of even the best of men, if you would have religious liberty.