WHAT WAS Abram called to do? Was it some light thing? Something that would not cross his feelings, or try his faith, or make his tears flow? No, it was a very serious affair when God said unto Abram, "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee." Men of all nations love their country, however bleak and uninviting it may be. It is the fatherland, and dear to their hearts. The Greenlander loves his, though it is covered with eternal snow; and the South Sea Islander loves his; and Abram, who was a man of strong attachments, felt his heart ache when told he must leave scenes so familiar and dear.
Not only must he leave his country, but his kindred, his cousins, his friends and relations. Ah! many pleasant days he had spent with them, but now he must bid them farewell, except the few who were to accompany him on his journey. Hereafter he must look upon the faces of strangers. He must forsake his father's house too. He must leave the old homestead, with its sweet and tender associations, the time-worn chair, where his father Terah had rested at eventide. He must forsake the graves of the dead, and the homes of the living, and go forth into a strange land that God would show him.
When Christ invites one to forsake his sins and flee to the great salvation, it is with the same voice that said to Abram, "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, and come unto a land that I will show thee." Yes, the sinner must forsake his birthplace, the city of Destruction, where he had lived so long and so pleasantly—all the scenes, companions, and pursuits that would hinder him on his journey, and firmly set his face toward another country, even a heavenly. He has been told on good authority, that he that loveth father, mother, brothers, sisters, houses, lands, ease, reputation, more than Christ, cannot be his disciple.
God only knows the fierce struggles that agitate the soul, as it answers the questions the Spirit of God addresses to it in words like these: Oh, sinner, will you live, or die? Which will you have, earth, or Heaven? Will you wander in the wilderness with God's people, or remain in Egypt to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season? Was the universe made for you, or for God? Has not God a right to you by creation and preservation, and by every blessing he has showered upon you ever since you have had your being? Have you not been bought with a price, even the precious blood of Christ? Come, forsake the beggarly elements of this world, and flee to a land that I will show thee.
There is still another period in a man's history, when he seems to hear the voice that Abram heard; it is when he is called to die. Arise, depart, for this is not your rest, says God. Come unto a land that I will show thee. What, says the good man, when love of life at times triumphs over his faith, must I leave my pleasant labors here; the church of God, the solemn assembly, the Sabbath-day; my family, so precious to my heart that it is like tearing limb from limb even to think of leaving them? Must I bid farewell to the changing seasons, to the light of sun, moon, and stars, and lie down in the darkness of the grave, and keep company with the worm?
But come unto a land that I will show thee, says God. It is a better land than this, a land where sickness, sin, and death may not enter. There they have no need of sun, moon, or stars, for God and the Lamb are the light thereof. Come, I will wipe away all thy tears. Now faith prevails. The good man dies as calmly as he would go to bed at night, feeling sweetly assured of the rest that remaineth to the people of God.—M. A. W. C. in American Messenger.
One Hour with God.
One hour with God, when day is o'er,
Is sweeter than all other hours;
Then vexing cares and worldly powers
Make room for Him whom we adore.
We hear his voice; he bends his ear
To listen to the heart's request;
Our tired heads lean upon his breast;
His own hand wipes each rising tear.
One hour with God! hail, Father, Friend,
Redeemer, ever near and true.
With thee so near, how pale the view
Of all the joys that earth can lend.
Oh, this is not some idler's dream,
That God thus stoops to talk with men,
And speak each promise o'er again;
Nor is it but a meteor's gleam,
That leaves the poor soul in the dark,
When one brief flash of light is o'er,
Till dark seems darker than before;
Oh no, 'tis an immortal spark
From the great Sun that ne'er grows dim,
That smiles around us night and day:
We warm us in the constant ray,
While yet we wait and watch for Him.
One hour with God! and if 'tis given
That one brief hour gives joy like these,
Bethink thee of the coming bliss,
The everlasting bliss of Heaven. [Am. Mes.]
Sacrifices to Juggernaut.
A CORRESPONDENT of the London Times, attended the recent sacrifice to Juggernaut, in Hindostan, which lasted from May 28 to June 6, 1864. He says:
"Though the heat was intense, the thermometer marking 135 degrees, thousands of people were present to witness the ceremonies. The centers of attraction were the two Juggernaut cars, immense lumbering masses of wood 60 feet in height, on which stood the hideous idol, moving upon six heavy wheels. Multitudes rushed to the ropes, eager for the honor of pulling their deity along. Their efforts to start it were for a long time in vain, till at last the huge mass moved forward a few yards, crushing out a life with every revolution of its wheels. The vast multitude then seemed suddenly possessed with delirium. They fought and struggled with each other to get near the car, which had stopped as if by magic. They stooped down and peered beneath its wheels, and rose with scared faces to tell their friends of the sight. Three human victims, two men and a woman, had been crushed to death, and lay there heaps of mangled flesh. Two other men lay before the car when it stopped, waiting for it to move. The Brahmins on the car looked down upon the poor wretches with perfect unconcern, and even signalled to the crowd to pull again; but the policemen present made them drag the car back, so that the bodies could be got out from between the wheels. There was no question that these were voluntary sacrifices. The government of Christian England should be more rigorous in preventing the performance of such cruel heathenish rites, as within the last summer took place within twenty miles of the capital of the Indian empire."
The Standard.
Is the Bible our standard of faith and practice? Are we to judge of our religious state from the correspondence of our experience and practice with its teachings? So says the whole Protestant Church. Whatever they divide upon, they are united in this, that the Word of God is the supreme law of human action. Here they meet upon common ground. And this is the true view of the case. If the Bible is of any authority it of the highest authority. By this Word we must be judged at the last day, and by this Word we should prove ourselves. The great tendency is to ignore the teaching of the Bible. And it requires watchfulness and energy to resist the common tendency. In a rapid stream he who would not be borne down by the current must row hard, and constantly. Preaching, by explaining and enforcing the Word of God, has well-nigh gone out of fashion. The text is generally taken from the Bible, though some modern pulpit orators base their Sunday evening discourses upon popular proverbs, slang phrases, or quotations from Shakespeare. But from whatever source the text is taken, the body of the sermon is made from the sayings of men, or from the periodical literature of the day. We have a great deal of preaching for the times, we need preaching for eternity. Preachers are demanded who can "speak with authority, and not as the scribes" who read smooth essays that lull their hearers into a feeling of false security.—Earnest Christian.
Beware of the World!
By Timothy Titcomb
I NEVER heard of an American girl going abroad to study music, for the purpose of fitting herself for a public musical career, without a pang. A musical education, an introduction to public musical life, and a few years of that life, are almost certain ruin for any woman. Some escape this ruin, it is true, but there are temptations laid for every step of their life. They find their success in the hands of men who demand more than money for wages. They find their personal charms set over against the personal charms of others. Their whole life is filled with rivalries and jealousies. They find themselves constantly thrown into intimate association on the stage with men who subject themselves to no Christian restraint—who can hardly be said to have had a Christian education. They are constantly acting in operas, the whole dramatic relish of which is found in equivocal situations, or openly licentious revelations. In such circumstances as these, a woman must be a marvel of modesty and a miracle of grace to escape contamination. I do not believe there is a woman in the world who ever came out of a public musical career as good a woman as she entered it. She may have escaped with an untarnished name; she may have preserved her standing in society, or even heightened it; but in her inmost soul she knows that the pure spirit of her girlhood is gone.—TIMOTHY TITCOMB, in Sabbath Recorder.
Obituary Notices.
By John Byington
DIED in the town of Newton, Mich., of diptheria, Anna, adopted daughter of Sophia and Lyman Gerould, in the 7th year of her age. Anna was patient in her illness, and could talk of Jesus and the resurrection, and we have no doubt will "come again from the land of the enemy." Jer. xxxi, 16.
The funeral was held at the meeting-house, where a few remarks were made by the writer on the above scripture.
JOHN BYINGTON.
Blessed Are They That Mourn
☞ Blessed are they that mourn.
Crimes in New York
CRIMES IN NEW YORK.—The Superintendent of the Metropolitan Police says the arrests made during the last quarter amount to the unprecedented total of 9,122, being nearly 3,000 more than had been arrested during any preceding quarter. The greater number of arrests have been of persons who were accustomed to follow in the wake of the army, for the purpose of plundering.
This Week's Review.
By Editor
The reader will find in this number many testimonies which speak loudly concerning the present demoralized state of the world, and not the world only, but the church also. And these testimonies we gather from those who cannot be accused of being in anywise predisposed in favor of Adventism. What mean such utterances as we give under the heading "The Crisis of the World," from the editor of the Christian Press, and the extract concerning the nearness of the end, from "Pulpit Themes" in Sr. Howard's "Gleanings Arranged," and the "Increase of Crime" from the Earnest Christian? Is the truth becoming so plain that to doubt is impossible? Is God preparing the hearts of the people for a great work soon to be accomplished? Let us so trust and pray. We rejoice to have the minds of the people everywhere called to these things by those against whom they can certainly have no prejudice.
— The record of the increase of crime is startling. See the little item concerning crime in N. Y. City; an increase of 3,000 criminal cases in one quarter, being at the rate of 12,000 a year in one city. Read again the "Increase of Crime" from the Earnest Christian, in which it is shown that many of the perpetrators of high outrages are professed followers of Christ and still maintain their position in the nominal church. Who can doubt the application to such of Paul's language to Timothy, therein quoted?
— "The Old Error Repeated," shows clearly the great mistake the professed church of the present day is making. As the Jews, the popular church of their age, stumbled over the first advent of Christ, so the churches of the present day are stumbling over the second advent. We would that they might awake to their course. The honest will. Reader, if you have church-members in your neighborhood who are willing to investigate these things, show them this article.
— "Expecting the Saviour, an Essential Feature in True Christian Character," is another article to the point, showing the important place which the doctrine of the second coming of Christ holds in the records of revelation. It is an extract from a sermon by Dr. M'Caul. Let all church-members read this also. No class of persons urge, more frequently than they, as an excuse for neglecting the doctrine of the advent, that it is of no consequence whether or not we believe it, or know any thing about it. If we are only prepared for death, that is enough. It may help such to be told by one of their own number that if they oppose and reject the doctrine, they show that they lack at least four essential features of a true Christian character. This, and the article just mentioned, are from writers of the highest order.
— The Discussion at Portland, is brought down in this number to the close of the first evening. We are condensing as much as is possible to do and still preserve a full summary of the argument used. We think it will be of interest to the reader; if not for the sound arguments used in favor of the Sabbath, at least for the novel objections brought against it.
— The extracts given under the heading "A Forlorn Hope," we commend to all who believe that the world is growing better. If evil is good, and darkness light, the condition of the world is improving, but not otherwise.
— As an evidence of the progress that has been made in the heathen world, we are sometimes told that the worship of Juggernaut is done away, &c. Read the short article "Sacrifices to Juggernaut," and see what was done in India only little over a year ago, notwithstanding that land is under the rule of professedly Christian England.
— Bro. Aldrich tells what is what in relation to "Old and New Style." We need a multitude of little tracts answering this, and other common objections, to be used like grape shot against the ranks of the opposition. Until we get these, the reader should thoroughly post himself when such articles as this appear, or carefully preserve the paper for future reference as circumstances may require. He also gives us some good advice concerning "How to Live." To be sure he does not tell us how it is "to be taken," as a preventive of cholera and other diseases; but the book itself will explain that.
— A cheering report from Bro. Sanborn shows that the Lord is still ready to work for his people. We are thankful that here and there the "cloudy pillar is brightening on Israel's side." How many of us are imploring the Lord for a great increase of his work in our midst? How many are sighing and crying for all the abominations done in the land, and pleading in the language of the Psalmist, "It is time for thee, Lord, to work; for they have made void thy law."
— Other items of interest in this number we need not enumerate. While the practical part is not overlooked, such as, Clear Views, Knocking at the Door, The Terrible Chain, &c., it contains as a whole, arguments and evidences for our position which can but cheer and encourage the weary pilgrim's heart.
*"Children, let your lamps be burning,
In hope of Heaven;
Waiting for our Lord's returning,
At dawn or even."*
Meetings at Catlin, N. Y.
By R. F. Cottrell
I HAVE just closed a course of twelve public lectures in this place. The attendance of those not connected with the church has been good, and there has been a good interest manifested, on the part of those who came out to hear the evidences of our position in relation to the prophecies and their fulfillment, or the signs of the times, and also in regard to the law of God and the Sabbath of that law.
I hope and trust that our labor here will not be lost; but that the fruit of it may be seen in the kingdom of God. Some are convinced of the claims of God upon them, who will not, I hope, take the position some have taken, acknowledging that the commandment of God requires the keeping of the seventh-day, but, at the same time, think that the keeping of the first-day will be accepted, if they are only sincere; as though a man could refuse to do what he knows the Lord commands him, offering a substitute, and yet be sincere! They would not think very highly of the sincerity of the man whose business is to rob his fellow men, but yet think their sincerity will shield them, while they knowingly rob God of the time he has reserved to himself.
"If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them." I hope that none of my hearers at Catlin, will be partakers of this promised happiness. The Lord bless them!
R. F. COTTRELL.
Origin of the Human Race.
THE apostle speaks of a certain class who go about foaming out their own shame. Very many of this class, like A. J. Davis, and Spiritualists generally foam out their own nonsense, by asserting that the human race has come up from dead matter by natural laws, through mushrooms, snakes, pollywogs, lizards, monkeys, apes, &c. They have been asked just to show a few beings in some of these stages of transition, and the fact that they are not able to do it, seems to make no difference with them whatever. If they were open to the testimony of true science, such facts as the following would put an effectual extinguisher upon their folly:
THE DARWINIAN THEORY OF CREATION
Philosopher F. Stein, of Prague University says: "A faithful and conscientious search into the propagation and development of the minutest animal forms of life, proves that they are pro-created only by like forms of the same species, that under no circumstance do they develop themselves from dead matter, and that no kind of experiment can produce the simplest living animal. How the first form of every species has been brought into existence, is a question which lies beyond the natural sciences, and which they never can answer; they have a right to be proud at having furnished the proof that life is only developed by life, but they cannot pretend to discover the secrets of creation. All efforts in this direction, which have lately again been made by Darwin, we may safely consider as utter failures."
Price Reduced.
By J. M. A.
“How to Live,” nicely bound in muslin, is now offered at this Office for one dollar, and the same in pamphlet form for seventy-five cents. This is a reduction of twenty-five cents on each, from the original price. No Seventh-day Adventist should fail to become the possessor of this valuable work.
The circulation that it has already obtained, shows that its merits are, indeed, appreciated. But there are yet many among our people that ought to become the immediate owners of this book. It is just what they need to assist in carrying on the work of reform that has been commenced among them. Now that the Cholera—that dreadful plague—seems to threaten our country, it is time to post up on the subject of health.
There is no better preventive against Cholera and other diseases, than “How to Live.” J. M. A.
Appointments.
THE next Quarterly Meeting of the churches of the Seventh-day Adventists of Western New York, will be held at the house of Bro. C. P. Buckland in Carlton, Orleans Co., January 13, and 14, 1866.
Those wishing to come on the cars will find a team in waiting at the depot at Albion on the arrival of the train from the West at 3, P. M. Those from the East will wait at the depot till this time.
W. G. BUCKLAND.
THE next Quarterly Meeting of the church of Seventh-day Adventists at Avon, Rock Co., Wis., will be held at the church in Avon, the first Sabbath in January. Meeting to commence Sabbath morning at half past ten o'clock.
It is the request of the church that Bro. Ingraham attend this meeting, if he can make it convenient, or any other of the preaching brethren.
ORVIL JONES. Clerk.
Business Department.
RECEIPTS.
For Review and Herald.
Annexed to each receipt in the following list, is the Volume and Number of the REVIEW & HERALD to which the money receipted pays. If money for the paper is not in due time acknowledged, immediate notice of the omission should then be given.
R Lockwood 28–7, W Ridley 29–1, T Ramsey 27–19, G W Winn 28–1, Geo Carter 29–1, Mrs E Stark 29–1, J Clegg 29–1, G W Harger 29–1, Mrs C E Lanson 29–1, M F Gylkison 29–1, Elizabeth Taylor 29–1, N A Warwick 29–1, Charles Hudson 29–1, Mrs M Ely 29–1, J Yates 28–5, Z Nicola 28–12, A E Tallman 28–1, H A Churchill 28–1, each $1,00.
H D Bruce 29–6, J Kimble 29–1, H C Merriam 30–1, Mrs E Hemenway 29–1, O C Meigs 29–1, Mrs C Bryant 29–1, Amos Pegg 28–13, Alex Carpenter 29–1, F Skipton 29–1, N Jones 29–1, D Curtis 29–7, G W Mitchell 29–1, N Hall 27–3, G A Poling 29–1, Ellen L Dean 29–1, each $2,00.
S Salisbury 28–1, L Brock 28–1, Eld W W Putnam 28–1, Mrs M Vanderleph 28–1, S Collar 28–1, E Butler 27–14, Thos McGee 28–1, each 50c.
R E Taylor $5,00, 29–1, A Hawley $4,00, 29–1, J M Adams 40c 28–1, I E Churchill $3,00, 29–11, Emma Quint $1,50, 27–1, W Russell $1,75, 27–16, D Poss $3,00, 29–1, R Adams 75cts, 26–3, F Kittle $1,50, 29–14, S E Lindsley for Mrs A Vickery 75cts, 27–14, M Willey $5,00, 31–1.
Subscriptions at the Rate of $3,00 per year
H K Pike $3,50 28–1, A Kellogg $3,00 29–1 J M Ferguson $3,00 29–12, J Pemberton $3,00 29–1, Priscilla Markillie $3,00 29–1,
Donations to Publishing Association.
A Sister $1,00.
Cash Received on Account.
Isaac Sanborn $61,00, Jacob Hare $5,00, Henry Nicola $25,00.
Books Sent By Mail.
J M Barthelf 50c, J B Lock 50c, J Chaffee $1,00, Mrs S B Halburt 15c, S O Winslow 20c, O C Meigs 50c, John M Adams 45c, Mary Beach 12c, Wm Mc Pheter $2,75, Wm Russell 27c, Amos Fogg $2,50, Hollis Clark $1,25, Alva True $1,50, O A Richmond $1,50, C A Corsaw 25c, J Hunter Jr $2,90, M F Dibble $1,00, G W Mitchell $1,00, G A Poling $2,75.
Books Sent as Common Freight.
James E Titus, Jackson, Mich. $55,12, P C Rodman, Ashaway, R. I., $67,91.
Michigan Conference Fund,
Mary Beach 43c.
For Bro. White.
Henry K Pike $1,00, G W Mitchell (for Bro. and Sister White) $4,50, Harmon Lindsay $6,00.
For Bro. Loughborough.
Henry K Pike $1,00, G W Mitchell $2,25, Harmon Lindsay $3,00.
News of White and Loughborough
By Editor
We have no particular information from Bro. White and Bro. Loughborough. We learn that they have left Dansville, and are now with their families in Rochester, N. Y. We trust they are still remembered by the church. We have a season of prayer in Battle Creek for them every Sabbath afternoon, which are seasons of blessing and encouragement.