Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Dec 15, 1881
General Articles.
By Mrs. E. G. White
GOD'S MESSAGE TO SAMUEL.
BY MRS. E. G. WHITE.
WHILE Eli's heart was filled with anxiety and remorse by the evil course of his sons, he found relief and comfort in the integrity and devotion of the youthful Samuel. His ready helpfulness and unvarying fidelity lightened the burdens of the careworn priest. Eli loved Samuel; for he saw that the grace and love of God rested upon him. It was not customary for the Levites to enter upon their peculiar services until they were twenty-five years of age. But Samuel had been an exception to this rule. Every year saw more important trusts committed to him, and, while yet a child, a linen ephod was placed upon him, as a token of his consecration to the work of the sanctuary.
As Samuel grew older, the anxiety of his parents in his behalf became more intense. Many were the petitions offered that he might not be contaminated by the wickedness reported concerning the sons of Eli. "And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favor both with the Lord and also with men."
When but twelve years old, the son of Hannah received his special commission from the Most High. The circumstances of that call are best related in the simple and touchingly beautiful language of the sacred writer: "The word of the Lord was precious in those days; there was no open vision. And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see; and ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep, that the Lord called Samuel." Supposing the voice to be that of Eli, the child hastened to the bedside of the aged priest, saying, "Here am I, for thou calledst me." The answer was, "I called not, my son, lie down again." Three times Samuel was called, and thrice he responded in like manner; and then Eli was convinced that the mysterious call was the voice of God. What feelings must have stirred the heart of the high priest at that hour! God had passed by his chosen servant, the man of hoary hairs, to commune with a child. This in itself was a bitter yet deserved rebuke to Eli and his house.
No spirit of envy or jealousy was awakened in Eli's heart. He humbly submitted to the will of God, and directed Samuel to answer, if again called, "Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth." Once more the child heard the mysterious voice, and answered, "Speak, for thy servant heareth." So awed was he at the thought that the great God should speak to him, that he could not remember the exact words which Eli bade him say.
"And the Lord said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house. When I begin, I will also make an end. For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering forever."
The Scriptures state that before receiving this message from God, "Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him." He was not destitute of a knowledge of God, nor was he a stranger to the influence of divine grace; but he was not acquainted with such direct manifestations of his presence, as were granted to the prophets. It was the Lord's purpose, however, to reveal himself in an unexpected manner, that Eli might hear of it through the surprise and inquiry of the youth.
Samuel had not been ignorant of the wicked course pursued by the sons of Eli, but he was filled with fear and amazement that the Lord should commit to him so terrible a message. He arose in the morning and went about his duties as usual, but with a heavy burden on his young heart. How earnestly did he long for the sympathy and counsel of his parents in that trying hour! The Lord had not commanded him to reveal the fearful denunciation to the priest or to his sons; hence he remained silent, avoiding as far as possible the presence of Eli. He trembled, lest some question would compel him to declare the divine judgments against one whom he so loved and reverenced.
Eli was confident that the message concerned himself. He felt that some great calamity was about to fall upon him and his house. He called Samuel, and solemnly charged him to faithfully relate what the Lord had revealed. The youth obeyed, and when the venerable man heard the appalling sentence, he bowed in meek submission: "It is the Lord; let him do what seemeth him good." Eli's faith in the wisdom and justice of God was unshaken. He confessed his own guilt and the guilt of his sons; and as he looked forward to the dread result, acknowledged that he deserved it all: "It is the Lord; who shall rise up in judgment against him? I have ever found him merciful, long-suffering, holy, and just. Let him do what seemeth him good."
Year after year the Lord for Eli's sake delayed his threatened judgments. How much might have been done in those years, to redeem the failures of the past! But the aged priest took no effective measures to avert the doom that hung over himself and his house. The forbearance of God caused Hophni and Phinehas to harden their hearts, and to become still bolder and more defiant in transgression. But steadily and surely the day of retribution was approaching. Every warning slighted, every day of probation squandered, made their punishment greater, their doom more certain.
God bears long with the perversity and stubbornness of men. By warnings and reproofs he shows them their true condition. Again and again he calls them to repentance. Though the multitudes wax bold in sin, trampling upon his mercy and defying his justice, still he pours his blessings upon them. Oh, how infinitely beyond human comprehension are the Lord's mercy and forbearance toward the children of men! Yet there is a limit, beyond which men may not go on in sin. When the fullness of iniquity is reached, —as with the Amorites, and the children of Israel who fell in the wilderness,—then the wrath of God is visited upon the transgressors of his law.
There are many who teach that man may violate God's law with impunity. These men seek to conceal the hideous character of sin, by clothing it with garments of righteousness. They may observe all the forms of religion, but their hearts are at enmity with God. They look upon his law as a yoke of bondage, because it forbids them to indulge their sinful desires. "Thou shalt not," placed at every avenue of sin, is the restriction of the just and holy One. Those who, like Hophni and Phinehas, disregard the commandments of God, and lead others to transgress, are Satan's agents to destroy souls. They say to the sinner, "It shall be well with thee," when God says, "I will punish the transgressor with my wrath, I will take him away in my hot displeasure."
God may bear long with the sins of men, but in his own time he will vindicate his authority. Although the wicked may say, "My way is hid from the Lord," yet when his interposition is needed, he will show that he beholds all the works of the children of men. In the days of Noah, the wickedness of man became so great that it was necessary for God to assert his authority and punish the transgressors of his law. A crisis had come, and the Lord declared the limits of his forbearance toward that guilty race. He sent his faithful servant with a message of warning, giving them one hundred and twenty years in which to turn from their sins. They rejected and despised God's love, and when the measure of their iniquity was full; when the boundaries of divine mercy were passed, the Lord swept that wicked race from the earth by the waters of the flood.
As men again increased, they departed from the Lord, and then Abraham was made the depositary of God's law. When the Israelites, through their long bondage in Egypt, had to a great degree lost the knowledge of that law, the Lord himself proclaimed it from Sinai, in the hearing of all the people. The nations of the earth were given to idolatry; it was to preserve the children of men from total apostasy, that the Lord manifested his mighty power in bringing the Israelites out of Egypt, and establishing them in the land of Canaan.
When God's authority had been set aside, and his worship neglected and despised, it became necessary for him to interpose, that the honor of his name might be maintained in the earth. Such a necessity existed in the days of Eli. None but a divine power could free the worship and ordinances of God from the corruption and disorder produced by the course of Hophni and Phinehas. The hand of God must be distinctly recognized; the agents of Israel's apostasy must be destroyed, yet the nation must not become extinct. The service of God must be purged from sin and sinners, and the worship itself honored and exalted.554
God's people had been crying to him with humiliation and fasting, that the wickedness of the wicked might come to an end. And while he manifested his power as an avenger to the wicked, he would also appear as the protector of the righteous. Though their prayers might long have seemed unheard, yet in God's own time they saw that he had given ear to their supplications, and answered them by terrible things in righteousness.
In every age, God's judgments have been visited upon the earth because men transgressed his law. What, then, have we to expect as we behold the wickedness which prevails at the present day? An ungrateful people, forgetful of God's care, his long forbearance, and his unnumbered blessings, are showing contempt for his holy law. Many of the acknowledged leaders in the church and in the nation, break, and teach others to break, that law, as sacred to God as his own throne and name. It is time for the Lord himself to assert his authority in the earth. And he is doing this, by fires, by floods, by tempests. He removes his protecting, providential care, and visits his judgments upon the children of men.
In these days of peril shall we show less devotion to the truth of God, and less fervent attachment to his law, than in former years? The very condition of things exists which Christ declared would be, prior to his second coming in power and glory. The prevailing ungodliness tends to paralyze and even to destroy true faith and piety. But this is the very time when the gold of Christian integrity will shine brightest, in contrast to the dross of hypocrisy and corruption. Now is the time for Christ's chosen to show their devotion to his service,—the time for all his followers to bear the noblest testimony for their Master by standing firm against the prevailing current of evil.
As we see the results which have followed a disregard of God's law,—dishonesty, theft, licentiousness, drunkenness, and murder,—we are prepared to say with the psalmist, "I love thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold;" "in keeping of them, there is great reward." When the divine law is set aside, the greatest misery will result, both to families and to society. Our only hope of better things is to be found in a faithful adherence to the precepts of Jehovah. Infidel France once tried the experiment of rejecting the authority of God. What scenes of horror followed! Men cast aside the divine law as a yoke of bondage, and in their boasted liberty they placed themselves under the rule of the veriest tyrant. Anarchy and bloodshed ruled that terrible day. It was then demonstrated to the world that the surest way to undermine the foundation of order and government, is to set at naught the law of God.
Let us remember that "by the law is the knowledge of sin." The commandments of God convict the sinner of his guilt; but that perfect law has been obeyed by Christ in our stead, and through faith in him we are released from our great debt, and are placed where, in his strength, we can render obedience to God. Instead of feeling that we are now in the slightest degree excusable in further transgression, we shall realize as never before the justice of God's claims upon us, and the sacred character of his law, since Christ must die to maintain its authority.
Ere long the obedient will see the blessed results that follow the keeping of all God's commandments and the transgressors of his law will reap the reward of their doings. The Judge of all the earth will vindicate his insulted authority. Already we see his judgments in the land. And the end is not yet. He will work until sin and sinners are destroyed from the earth.
"A LITTLE WHILE."
A LITTLE while, our fightings shall be over;
A little while, our tears be wiped away;
A little while, the presence of Jehovah
Shall turn our darkness into heaven's bright day.
A little while, the fears that oft surround us
Shall to the memories of the past belong;
A little while, the love that sought and found us
Shall change our weeping into heaven's glad song.
A little while! His presence goes before us,
A fire by night, a shadowy cloud by day;
His banner, love-inscribed, is floating o'er us,
His arm almighty is our strength and stay!
A little while to live and work for Jesus,
To gather with the reapers till he come;
Oh, let not faithless fears and doubtings seize us—
A little while, and then the harvest-home!
A little while! 'Tis ever drawing nearer—
The wished-for dawning of that glorious day.
Blest Saviour, make our spirit's vision clearer,
And guide, oh, guide us in the shining way.
A little while! Oh, blessed expectation!
A little while! "Lord, tarry not," we cry;
Our hearts up-leap in fond anticipation;
Rejoice! "The coming of the Lord is nigh!"
—Selected.
SPIRITUALISM A SATANIC DELUSION.
SPIRITUALISTS DENY GOD, AND BLASPHEME.
"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God." Ps. 53:1.
W. F. Jamieson in debate with Burgess, said, "I do not believe in a personal God, no great first cause, no CREATOR. Space, and the worlds, or the matter composing them, never were created, never needed a First Cause."—Banner of Light, April 12, 1871.
In the Banner of Light of Aug. 8, 1868, we have the following:—
"It is just as sensible to pray to the ocean, or the sun, as to the Jewish 'unknown Jehovah,' or the Christian's God. Nature justifies faith in no such ABORTION! . . . People of shallow brains are so apt to get mad when they hear a free-thinker speak irreverently of the GREAT OVERGROWN BOSS of the universe!"
Mr. Jamieson, in the Crucible, Moses Hull's paper, of April 22, 1871, says:—
"A personal God would be a monstrosity." "All prayer addressed to a supposed Supreme Intelligence is idolatry. There is not and cannot be a Supreme Spirit even." Speaking of the God of the Jews, he describes him as "an unmitigated tyrant, a despicable murderer, worse and meaner than a common cut-throat. If a Yankee should ever have the ill-luck to get into his kingdom, he would kick his 'alabaster throne' to pieces!!" &c.
A speaker at the Spiritualist camp-meeting at Havre de Grace, Md., in August, 1871, ranted as follows:—
"It is an insult to our psychological development to admit such an absurdity as a creature like this God. We look beyond such mummery; ours is a vast hierarchy of spirits endowed with all the power these fools allot to their so-called omnipotent God. Ruler of what is he? Not of this world, for he don't rule me. I do as I please, so do you. Why, even Satan can overmatch him, according to Christian doctrine."
Joel Tiffany, a Spiritualist lecturer and publisher, in his monthly of June, 1858, said:—
"My experience has been, go among Spiritualists where you will, and, as a general thing, they have no faith in a living, conscious, intelligent Deity, possessed of love, volition, affection, etc., as an object of religious aspiration and worship."
THE DEVIL IS THEIR GOD AND FATHER.
"Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do." John 8:44.
Man is so constituted that he will worship some being or power which he regards as superior to himself. And as Spiritualists refuse allegiance to the God of the Bible, it will not be surprising if they choose Satan as their god and father. History shows that such has always been the case with men in past ages.
Concerning demon worship in early times, Gibbon says:—
"It was the universal sentiment, both of the church and of heretics, that the demons were the authors, the patrons, and the objects of idolatry. Those rebellious spirits who had been degraded from the rank of angels and cast down into the infernal pit, were still permitted to roam upon earth, to torment the bodies and to seduce the minds of sinful men. The demons soon discovered and abused the natural propensities of the human heart toward devotion, and, artfully withdrawing the adoration of mankind from their Creator, they usurped the place and honors of the Supreme Deity. By the success of their malicious contrivances, they at once gratified their own vanity and revenge, and obtained the only comfort of which they were yet susceptible—the hope of involving the human species in the participation of their guilt and misery."—Vol. i. p. 533.
In the Banner of Light, Nov. 4, 1865, are the following question and answer; the answer by the "controlling spirit," through Mrs. Conant:—
"Q. Do you know of any such spirit as a person we call the devil?
"A. We certainly do. And yet THIS SAME DEVIL IS OUR GOD, OUR FATHER."
Dr. A. B. Child says, "What is called the devil is the Spirit of God in nature."—Christ and the People, p. 167.
The same author in another work says:—
"It is the mission of the devil, yet unthought of by men, to carry them through the hell of earth, and prepare them for the heaven of the spiritual world."—Better Views of Living, p. 41.
THEY PRAY TO THE DEVIL.
As they acknowledge Satan to be their god and father, we should naturally expect that when they pray at all, they would pray to him.
Miss Lizzie Doten, a celebrated trance lecturer, opened a prayer as follows:—
"O Lucifer, thou son of the morning, who fell from thy high estate, and whom mortals are prone to call the embodiment of evil, WE LIFT UP OUR VOICES TO THEE."
A Spiritualist prayer, called an "Invocation," found in Banner of Light, April 18, 1871, opens thus: "Thou spirit of the air," etc.
And this, of course, means no other than Satan, who is called the "prince of the power of the air." Eph. 2:2. No doubt Satan inspired that prayer to himself as the spirit or prince of the air. The apostle Peter says: "God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell [Gr. TARTARUS], and delivered them into chains of darkness," etc. 2 Pet. 2:4.
The word "tartarus" means the regions of our atmosphere.
Dr. Wm. Ramsey, an able and learned writer, says:—
"The word tartarus means, according to Greek writers in a physical sense, the bounds or verge of this material system. . . . That place is probably, at present, within the atmosphere of our earth."
We think, rather, that it is the region beyond our atmosphere, the inter-planetary spaces, which are dark and cold beyond our comprehension.
The learned Ralph Cudworth, D. D., in his "Intellectual System," vol. iii. p. 363, while speaking of Peter's remark says:—
"And by tartarus here, in all probability, is meant this lower caliginous (i. e., dark) air or atmosphere of our earth, according to that of St Austin concerning these angels, 'that after their sin, they were thrust down into the misty darkness of this lower air.'" De. Gen. ad Lit. lib. 3, cap. 10.
Apuleius, de Deo Socratis, says:—
"There are certain divine powers of a middle nature, situate in this interval of the air, between the highest ether and the earth below. . . . Through the same demons, as Plato says in his Symposium, all revelations, the various miracles of magicians, and all kinds of presages are carried on."
It must please Satan to see that men are willing to worship him directly by name; but when that is too bold, he is satisfied to receive homage through personification, as in the Egyptian hero-worship, and in that of Romans, Brahmins, and Hindoos.
The following extract is from a prayer offered by E. S. Wheeler, in Music Hall, Boston, Sunday, March 5, 1871; and published in the Banner of Light, July 15, 1871:—
"Most holy angels, O ye great and good and beautiful souls, who have made earth the Heaven it is fast becoming, hear our prayers. Unable to comprehend an Infinite Mind, we offer our supplications to you. Great souls that have blessed the world, condescend to bless us. Martyrs, heroes, patriots—ye who have inspired in all times the hearts of men, give us your sympathy, your love, your wisdom, in this hour. Mighty ones of years gone by—Pythagoras, Zoroaster, Confucius, Buddha—come to us. Socrates, Plato, Jesus, Mahomet, Ann Lee, Washington, Channing, Elizabeth Browning Theodore Parker, hear us as we ask for strength and wisdom, and give, in answer to our practical prayer for help, that assistance which you well know is our necessity. Amen."
Farmer, in "Demonology," says:—
"To some persons it may appear strange that possessions should be ascribed by many of the fathers after the time of Justin Martyr, to fallen angels.
"Several philosophers taught that the heathen demons were evil spirits of a rank superior to mankind, and that these demons personated the souls of the dead, gods, and genii, and procured themselves to be worshiped under their names."
In this devil-worship, Spiritualists have "progressed" backward into heathenism, so that now they can number their brethren by hundreds of millions!
Rev. B. Clough, speaking of the heathen of Ceylon says:—
"I now state, and I wish to be heard in every corner of the Christian world, that the devil is regularly, systematically, and ceremoniously worshiped by a large majority of the inhabitants of the island of Ceylon!"
THEY ARE ANTICHRIST
"Every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God." 1 John 4:3.
"Denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ." Jude 4.
"Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist that denieth the Father and the Son." 1 John 2:22.
The following is from the Spiritual Telegraph, No 37:—
"What is the meaning of the word Christ? 'Tis not, as generally supposed, the Son of the Creator of all things. Any just and perfect being is Christ. The crucifixion of Christ is nothing more than the crucifixion of the spirit, which all have to contend with before becoming perfect and righteous. The miraculous conception of Christ is merely a fabulous tale."
THE WAY TO GOD DIRECT.
It is a very short and direct way to God when we come to him through Christ. He is the way. We can make him our means of access if we will leave our sins. We need not wander long in sorrow and darkness if we will only take this direct way to the light. It is our own fault alone if we do not find the blessing of God.
Generally it is caused by an unwillingness on our part to give up all our sins, or if we give them up, to do it with the idea that we are never under any circumstances to return to them again. But we must perish if we do not do this. Why not then all of us, at once and forever, give up our sins and make Christ our portion? We can come to God at once for help if we will do it thus.
SIX WAYS TO KILL PRAYER-MEETINGS.
By Editor
THERE are many persons who seem to desire to accomplish the object contemplated by this article; but who set about their work in such a bungling sort of way that we have thought they might be grateful for some definite and formulated instruction concerning the best means for accomplishing the end they have in view. We have, accordingly, drawn upon the experience and observation of several of our brethren whose opinion is entitled to respect; we have given the matter no little thought, and venture to lay down a few rules for the attainment of an object which would seem to be dear to a good many Christian hearts.
1. Be irregular in your attendance at the prayer-meeting. One might think that systematically "forsaking the assembling of yourselves together—as the manner of some is" would exert a more deleterious effect upon the prayer-meeting than to attend it semi-occasionally; but we are satisfied that this view is incorrect. If all the members of a church would tacitly agree to absent themselves habitually from the prayer-meeting, of course the meeting would soon die; but if only half of them adopt this course of action, the prayer-meeting will still live and may prosper. As it is not likely that all the members of a Christian church will acquiesce in the resolution wholly to forsake the social assemblies of God's people—as it is not likely that even a clear majority of them will do so—we reiterate our advice: Be irregular in your attendance. Come just often enough to make your semi-occasional absences a grief and burden to those who are always there. Lead them to expect you; and then disappoint them. It will have an exceedingly depressing effect. This effect can be intensified, during a season of increasing religious interest, by absenting yourself for three or four consecutive weeks.
2. Come late to prayer-meeting. This rule is not without exceptions. We have known excellent effects attained (in the direction of the object contemplated by this article) where persons of prominence in the church were systematically the first ones at the prayer-meeting, and took seats in about the middle of the house, so that three-fourths of those who came after them—taking seats behind the early comers—would be at least forty feet from the leader of the meeting. As a rule, however, come late if you want to kill the prayer-meeting. Come tramping in during the reading of the Scriptures, or the remarks made upon them, so that neither you, nor anybody else, will have any definite idea what direction the leader intended to give to the thought and feeling of God's people. The effect will be admirable.
3. Sit well back in the prayer-meeting, and as far apart as possible. There is something gained in sitting close together, so that you can whisper and giggle with your neighbors; but the best results are attained by sitting moodily apart. At any rate, SIT BACK. A household interested in any common object, cluster closely about a common center, and each borrows enthusiasm from personal contact with his friend and brother. Reverse all that in the Christian household, if you want to kill the prayer-meeting.
4. If you can sing, start some tune which no one but yourself ever heard. If you can't sing, the effect is all the better. The best time to start this tune is just when the leader is about to give out a hymn in which all could join, and which would appropriately voice the sentiment of the meeting.
5. If you speak or pray let it be: (1) At the utmost possible length. Twenty minutes is none too long. (2) On an entirely different theme from that which your brethren have been considering. (3) If possible at the very close of the meeting. Watch your chance—letting slip, of course, a great many chances which an ordinary mortal would choose—and pop up just as the leader is about to pronounce the benediction. The effect will be most happily deleterious—not merely on the meeting in which your efforts in this direction are crowned with success, but on subsequent meetings.
6. If possible, get up a controversy with the leader, or with some brother that has preceded you, when you speak or pray. Find fault with his exegesis. Carry his suggestions to ridiculous lengths which he never intended, and then expose the fallacy of them. Turn the prayer-meeting into a debating-society if you possibly can. This will tend to promote irregularity of attendance on the part of some who are inclined to be constant. If done in prayer, the effect is greater than if done in the course of remarks; and we have seen it very neatly done in prayer more than once.
7. We were at first inclined to announce as our seventh rule: Hurry out of the prayer-meeting without speaking to anybody—without shaking hands with man, woman, or child. This line of conduct has its influence, and may be occasionally indulged in—especially where the theme of the meeting has been "brotherly love," or the nature of the meeting tender and melting—with effect. But on the whole, our seventh rule shall be: Linger after the prayer-meeting; manifest a heartfelt interest in the welfare of Zion; BUT CRITICISE EVERYTHING THAT HAS BEEN SAID AND DONE. Find fault with the leader; make fun of this sister's grammar, that brother's tones and looks and gestures. If you hear anybody else doing this, make sure that the brother or sister criticised hears of it. By adopting this course, you can carry the work of killing the prayer-meeting out of the prayer-meeting, and scatter it through the week.
P. S. Of course, if you don't want to kill the prayer-meeting you will take pains to violate the rules given above.—Examiner and Chronicle.
ROME AND REFORMATION.
"You will permit the Italians to be evangelized by Italians. They prefer to be Christianized not Germanly, or Scotchly, or Americanly, but Italianly. It is a mistake to call us reformers. We are not; we don't reform anything in Italy, and we don't reform anything because there is nothing to be reformed. We have learned from young America not to lose time and labor for anything; and to try to reform, and not reform, is to lose time and labor. And as the church of Rome is unreformable, it would be losing time to try to reform the church of Rome. Reform in the church of Rome must come from the laity, and the pope can never accept anything from them, because it would be a bad example for any pope to submit to the wishes of his own children. All the reform is to come from the pope; so we shall have to wait a long time, because the pope is not such a fool as to suicide himself to please anybody.
When I was with Garibaldi, in the military hospitals, I learned many extraordinary facts. A man has a small wound, say, on the smallest finger on his hand, so small that it is almost imperceptible; but owing to the bad blood, or the foul atmosphere, or some other cause, the finger becomes gangrened. The surgeon loses no time, but takes out his knife, and cuts the finger off. He cuts off the hand, again, to save the arm; or, being a young and courageous man, fond of experiment, he severs the arm to save the body. But if the whole man is gangrened, no surgeon will cut the patient into one hundred parts to save nothing in him. That commits the patient to the undertaker. This is the case with the church of Rome. Now, after its multifarious councils, and especially after the last sacrilegious and blasphemous council held under Pius IX., the church is in error from beginning to end, from head to foot. What will you reform? Nothing! nothing! nothing! The only thing is to commit the church of Rome to the public undertaker, and the sooner he undertakes her burial the better. Oh, the stench! That's the reason why we don't try to reform the church."—Gavazzi.
GOSSIP'S.
By John Ploughman
If we must talk, at least let us be free from slander, let us not blister our tongues with backbiting. Slander may be sport to talebearers, but it is death to those whom they abuse. We can commit murder with the tongue as well as with the hand. The worst evil you can do a man is to injure his character; as the Quaker said to his dog, "I'll not beat thee, nor abuse thee, but I'll give thee an ill name." All are not thieves that dogs bark at, but they are generally treated as if they were; or the world for the most part believes that where there is smoke there is fire, and what everybody says must be true. Let us then be careful that we do not hurt our neighbor in so tender a point as his character, for it is hard to get dirt off if once it is thrown on; and when a man is once in people's bad books, he is hardly ever quite out of them. If we would be sure not to speak amiss, it might be as well to speak as well as possible; for if all men's sins were divided into two bundles, half of them would be sins of the tongue. "If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body."
Gossips of both genders, give up the shameful trade of talebearing; don't be the devil's bellows any longer, to blow up the fire of strife. Leave off setting people by the ears. If you do not cut off your tongues, at least season them with the salt of grace. Praise God more and blame neighbors less. Any goose can cackle, any fly can find out a sore place, any empty barrel can give forth sound, any brier can tear a man's flesh. No flies will go down your throat if you keep your mouth shut, and no evil speaking will come up. Think much, but say little; be quick at work and slow at talk; and above all, ask the great Lord to set a watch over your lips.—John Ploughman's Talks.
WITHHELD STATISTICS.
By Editor
How it would startle some of our congregations to have the pastor follow the reading of the annual report of his church with a few of the withheld statistics, somewhat after this sort: “Of the thirty-two who have joined our church the past year, I find that five of those who came in on profession have unmistakably fallen into former evil ways, while of those who were received by letter, three were certainly lacking in good character in the churches they left, although by the record they were in ‘good and regular standing.’ One of our elders is popularly reported to have swindled a neighbor outrageously in a notorious business transaction. We have lost one of our more prominent members by his transfer to the county jail on conviction of crime. A careful examination of our record has convinced me that fully one-third of our members can be counted on the ‘dead head’ list. They do nothing in the line of Christian activity. As to their example, they are not bad enough to be a warning to the outside world, nor good enough to be taken as an example by anybody—in or out. Our benevolent contributions look pretty well for our numbers, but I learn that fully one-third of their full amount has been given by four persons; and that of the other members of the church, more than one-half gave less to religious causes than they paid toward public amusements, while there are not a few families which gave more for peanuts during the year than they put in the contribution box. A fair estimate of the tobacco bills of the congregation is twice and three-eighths the amount given by the church to home and foreign missions combined.” Such a supplement as this, in kind and in degree, according to the particular community, could be truthfully made in many a church where the annual report last presented is spoken of as “every way encouraging.”—S. S. Times.
DO NOT GO ALONE.
A CROWD had gathered in a great Welsh "chapel," barn-like in architecture, but spacious and filled with people. The preacher was entertained by a farmer. The time of service arrived, and no preacher. The good farmer became alarmed. He feared Hughs had forgotten or fallen asleep. He sent a servant-maid to his room to inquire. She returned in a few moments, and reported that she did not knock at his door. "Why, sir, Mr. Hughs has company in his room. I heard him address another person and say, 'If thou go not with me I will not go thither! I will not go except thou go with me!'" and, added the girl, "Mr. Hughs spoke as if his friend would not come. I do not think there will be any preaching at the meeting." "O yes," said the farmer, "I understand it. He will come, and he will not come alone. We shall have a melting, glorious time over there. Sinners will be converted at that meeting." And sinners were converted by the score.
Boys’ Rules for Success
Boys, walk upright. Be cheerful. Be polite. Be honest. Be industrious. Tell the truth. Use gentlemanly language. Buy nothing because it is cheap, unless you need it. Pay for what you buy. If you doubt your ability to pay, don't buy. When with men or your superiors, be content to listen and learn. Read good newspapers and good books. Keep good company. Keep regular hours, and keep your word. Any boy who will observe these few short precepts is sure to be respected, and nothing promotes success in this world so much as the respect of one's fellows.—Sel.
Lessons Learned in Adversity
STARS may be seen from the bottom of a deep well, when they cannot be discerned from the top of a mountain. So are many things learned in adversity which the prosperous man dreams not of.