Earlier text: CHRIST'S AMBASSADORSAN OPEN LETTER.
By Mrs. S. N. Haskell
DEAR SISTERS: We feel very thankful that there are so many who have a desire to work for the Master, and we know that God will open some way for you to be used in the closing work of the message if you fully consecrate yourselves to him and his service. In “Early Writings,” on page 138, under the article “The Loud Cry,” we read: “I heard voices which seemed to sound everywhere, ‘Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.’” Again, on page 139: “Servants of God endowed with power from on high, with their faces lighted up, and shining with holy consecration, went forth to proclaim the message from heaven. . . . I heard everywhere a multitude of voices saying, ‘Here is the patience of the saints; here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.’” The voices are not the voices of angels, but the voices of human beings like you and me, who have learned so fully to trust in God that he can intrust them with his Spirit to carry forward his great work in the earth. Somebody is going to do it, and that soon. Will yours be one of the many voices? Will mine? God grant that we may both have a part in the great work. If we who have received the light of the Third Angel’s Message do not seek God for the “holy consecration” that will enable us to do this work, he will pass us by and raise up others who will consecrate themselves wholly to his service, who will do the work, and we shall be left out. God forbid that any who read these lines shall be among that number. The object of this work among our sisters is to arouse every woman in the rank and file of our people all over the earth to come up to the help of the Lord against the mighty. If you seek God for help now, to let your voice be heard pleading with sinners to forsake sin, when the loud cry of the loud cry comes you will be found among the many voices sounding the closing notes of the message. The voices say, “Here is the patience of the saints.” Can you say that truthfully? Can you say to the members of your own family, “Here is the patience of the saints”? or have you been in the habit of showing so much impatience that you do not dare speak of the patience of the saints in your own home? Can you speak of it to your neighbors? Has your daily walk been such before them that your life preaches the truth? If your life seems a failure in this respect, do not give way to discouragement for one moment, but “gird up the loins of your mind,” and say, “The Lord God will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.” Isa. 50:7. God is able and willing to take every human being who will give himself wholly to him, and make him a partaker of the divine nature. We long to see our sisters in every part of the work ambassadors for Christ, doing the work that he would do if he were living in their neighborhood; namely, teaching the Scriptures to the people, comforting the sorrowing, lifting up the falling and the fallen, caring for the sick, etc. Study your Bible until you can go to your neighbors, and point them to the truth that seems so precious to you. THE RIGHTS OF WOMAN.
By Rev. M. Lowry
The rights of woman! What are they?
The right to labor, love, and pray;
The right to weep with those who weep;
The right to wake when others sleep. The right to dry the falling tear;
The right to quell the rising fear;
The right to smooth the brow of care,
And whisper comfort in despair. The right to watch the parting breath,
To sooth and cheer the bed of death;
The right when earthly hopes all fail,
To point to that within the veil. The right the wanderer to reclaim,
And win the lost from paths of shame;
The right to comfort and to bless
The widow and the fatherless. The right the little ones to guide
In simple faith to him who died;
With earnest love and gentle praise,
To bless and cheer their youthful days. The right the intellect to train,
And guide the soul to noble aim;
Teach it to rise above earth's toys,
And wing its flight for heavenly joys. The right to live for those we love;
The right to die that love to prove;
The right to brighten earthly homes
With pleasant smiles and gentle tones. Are these thy rights? Then use them well;
Thy silent influence none can tell;
If these are thine, why ask for more?
Thou hast enough to answer for. Are these thy rights? Then murmur not
That woman's mission is thy lot;
Improve the talents God has given;
Life's duty done, thy rest is Heaven. — Rev. M. Lowry, in the Housekeeper. Testimony Readings for Women’s Meetings
A good introduction to a woman's meeting is a careful reading of the following noted quotations from the Testimonies. Some may not know that such instruction has been given, and it will certainly be profitable to bring it afresh to the memory of those to whom it is familiar:— Vol. II, page 465, beginning with the paragraph on that page, to the close of the first paragraph on page 466. Vol. III, pages 79, 80, and 81. Vol. III, page 483, beginning with the last paragraph on that page, to the close of the second paragraph on page 484. Vol. II, pages 476 and 477. EXTRACTS FROM CORRESPONDENCE.
If the time comes when those we love stand in a trying place, where they must stand for what they believe is right against opposition, if we as wives or mothers will bid them be firm for principle, assuring them that we will stand by them, how much lighter-hearted they will go forth to meet their task. We may have an influence over our husbands which is marvelous. Not long ago my husband and I were passing through a severe trial. It seemed that things never did look so dark. He was called away on business, and I received a letter showing that he was very much discouraged. When it reached me, I was in the same condition, but I determined that I would not let him know it. So I earnestly sought the Lord before answering, and wrote him a letter full of courage and hope; and he told me that he thanked God on his knees for that letter, and that it helped him through that crisis. If we faithfully stand by the side of our companions, encouraging them to stand true to principle, and with a woman's quick intuition and ingenuity grasp the situation and find the bright side, keeping our own hearts in touch with Him who never fails nor is discouraged, we shall be able to prevent many a domestic calamity. I presume all of us know what it is to have our husbands become discouraged. My husband sometimes feels that way, and I realize that we as wives have a great opportunity at such times to stay up their hands and encourage them. When my husband is the most discouraged, I find it helps him for me to remind him that God is not dead, but that he still lives and is able to do all things. Of course he knows this, but sometimes cares press in so heavily that he loses sight of this assurance. We can also save our husbands a great deal of trouble by living within our means, and thus help to keep out of debt, and have a little something ahead for a rainy day. Nothing discourages a man much more than to be burdened with debts; and by economy in various ways we may be able to save a little here and a little there, and so make it possible for our husbands to respond to the calls for help in the work, and to keep of good courage. To-night as I read in the Home and Woman's Gospel Work departments of the REVIEW I am constrained to write a few words of encouragement to those who are growing weary by the way, or perhaps not weary, but discouraged because they can not see any results of their labor. Remember the faithfulness of Noah in his work. He preached one hundred and twenty years, and all that he could see as the result of his labor was its effect upon his own family. This might seem a small return for so much toil; but God counted Noah as righteous and his work as faithfully done. Our part is the faithfulness; God's part, the results. Ofttimes we look too much for the result of our labor, forgetting that it does not belong to us, and are tempted to give up. The most noble work a woman can do—the work which God gave her—is to train her children in the way they should go. This does not imply that she can not do anything else, but her home and family come first. I believe the best work a woman can do is to make a true home, filled with sunshine, where angels are pleased to dwell, and every woman can do this if she will, by seeking God for wisdom, and acting as if the Saviour presided in visible form in the home, and treating each member of the family as if he were the representative of Christ. Take courage, dear sisters, and work faithfully for God by doing the things he has given you to do, though they may seem to be humble. Leave all results to God, and be sure that at the end of each day you can say, “I did the best I knew;” and you will have the smile of Jesus, which brings joy and peace. I believe that as we are in the home, so we are outside. If we are happy in our homes, we will be happy everywhere. If we can stand alone with God in the experiences of home life, we need not be afraid to stand anywhere. When my husband and I started out in life we both had high ideals, and wanted to have everything of the very best. We were both strong, and we did have a good start in life. I determined that whatever I had, be it ever so much or ever so little, I would make go just as far, and show just as much, as possible; and that I would keep my house in such order that I would not be ashamed to have the angels come in. When I wash my dishes, or make my bed, I do it for the Lord. There is great satisfaction in doing your work so you can talk to the Lord about it. If your work is done as you would do it for the Lord himself, you will not be disturbed if a stranger should step to your cupboard, or go anywhere in your house. I visit with the Lord while I wash my dishes, sweep my floors, and make my bed. I have not always had all I wanted to do with, but I have stuck to the rule with which I started out, and have done the best I could with what I had, asking the blessing of the Lord to be upon it. Many a time in preparing something for the table I have been unable to get what I thought was necessary to make it palatable; but I told the Lord all about it, and asked him to make up the lack; and when it was upon the table, my husband and others would remark of its fine quality. I knew that it was not what I had done, but that it was the Lord's work. If we ask the blessing of the Lord upon anything which we do in his name, we may know that we have it. Since I began to live this way, everything seems purer and sweeter, and I find I can get along with about half what I did before. THE SHORTEST ROAD TO PERFECT HEALTH.
By T. S. Parnelle
When, through the laws of nature, the Lord brings together elements to produce the nutritious juice which is extracted from fresh, ripe grapes, and which is the best of wine, he occupies more time than he did when, in Cana of Galilee, he brought the same kind of elements together in a moment, and so furnished the good wine for the feast. Yet this miracle by which his work for mankind was done in a moment without the use of the vine, was not contrary to the laws of nature. It is just as true that every possible avenue to perfect health is in complete harmony with strict obedience to the laws of health. God can not be expected to work a miracle to restore anyone who is unwilling to deny self in order to conform to the laws of health; neither does he ever work a miracle to place anyone where he can ignore any requirement of his law, either moral or physical. In whatever way a person may be restored to health, God expects that person to “sin no more,” and furnishes the power to accomplish what he expects. Enoch, who was made perfectly healthy by the operation of a law, higher than laws with which the world is familiar, was so perfectly submitted to every one of God’s requirements, that of him it could be said, He “walked with God.” “By faith Enoch was translated.” “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” There never was, there never will be, there is not now, any faith in God, except that which comes through his word. Enoch was translated because he received God’s word. The one who receives the words that will keep him from tasting death, will yield to every requirement of God that he may afterward find, as long as he keeps those words. We have been told through the Spirit of Prophecy that the Lord’s words have a wider meaning than we have been in the habit of seeing in them. They mean what they say, yet their meaning will be found only by those who make a full surrender to him. Even then, the deepest meaning is for those whom God reserves for translation. We are all in God’s hands. Many of the saved will not be translated. “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth;” and yet his words “are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.” Prov. 4:22. Without doing anything “through strife or vain-glory,” we may seek for all the meaning that God has for us. He says, “My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.” Light will yet break out that has been hidden since the day of Pentecost. Before Pentecost light had been hidden by sin, since the foundation of the world. Did Enoch and Elijah find that light? They were exceptions to the general rule. Who has been translated since Pentecost? Paul said, “For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.” 1 Cor. 11:30. For what cause? The five preceding words are, “Not discerning the Lord’s body.” The Lord’s body is alive. The Lord has risen from the dead. His word is living and powerful. It is written not only in ink but in the lives of his people. His church is his body, as Paul says in other places: “For his body’s sake, which is the church” (Col. 1:24); “Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.” 1 Cor. 12:27. Right in connection with what Paul was saying when he said, “Not discerning the Lord’s body,” he says, “Despise ye the church of God?” How long it may take to learn never to despise the church, or even “the least” of God’s people, will depend on how long we are in learning to take God at his word. We can take him at his word as soon as we will drop self. “The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness,” etc., ungodliness is self. Only the grace of God, which every one may reach out for and take by faith, enabled the disciples to get the victory, and gain the blessing of Pentecost. The love that was shed abroad in their hearts by his Spirit that was given, “seeketh not her own.” 1 Cor. 13:5. They and the new converts “were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own.” Acts 4:32. That love “thinketh no evil.” With it is always found that wisdom from above that is “without partiality.” There was neither partiality nor murmuring for a time; but “there” afterward “arose a murmuring” because somebody was neglected. Something had shut out the fullness of the gift of God. The spirit that neglects the poor is the same spirit that murmurs against the rich. That wrong Spirit is admitted to the heart by failure continually to look to Jesus: and, by looking, to remain like him. God is to be seen wherever his life extends. “The Spirit is life.” We read, “Whither shall I flee from thy Spirit?” We can not despise even the least of the Lord’s children without despising his life that is in them. He says, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” So he says, “Let each esteem other better than themselves.” Self can not do this; but the gift of the Lord’s own life, to every one that believes, will enable us to. The Spirit of Christ, that it is death not to have (Rom. 8:9), will teach the believer to do the things recommended in Isaiah 58, among which are caring for the destitute and ceasing to point the finger of condemnation or even indifference at a brother’s sin. When the Spirit of God is allowed to lead us to this, among the good things promised is this: “Then . . . thine health shall spring forth speedily.” Until this is done no person will have faith to say, “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord. The Lord hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death.” Ps. 118:17, 18. Yet, to every one that will claim this promise, yielding himself to God, the power of God’s word will enable him to fulfill all these conditions. MOTHER'S INFLUENCE.
By Mrs. A. G. Bodwell.
NONE of us is without an influence. From day to day, as we tread the path of life, our words, actions,—yes, and even facial expressions,—play their part in turning our fellow travelers toward earth or heaven. There is no one, I believe, who carries so much of this dangerous though valuable property as a mother. If a mother's influence is what it should be in the home, neither evil men nor angels can overthrow her work. But, on the other hand, if her influence is thrown on the wrong side of the balance, it is hard indeed, if not almost impossible, for the minister, Bible worker, and teacher, combined with the Spirit of God, to undo the mischief of early years. My heart has been made sad many times, as I have seen mothers actually schooling their children in a wrong course, when really their desire was to train them aright. Old habits and customs cling to one with such a tenacity that they are woven into the very existence, and nothing but the Holy Spirit can make us see that we are sinning against God in what we are apt to consider the unimportant side of life—the minor details—trivial affairs. But, sisters, there is a deal of truth in the words, “There is nothing unimportant in our lives;” for God says that by such little things as words, we are to be either condemned or justified. My purpose is not to censure, but to bring to some mother’s mind things which, mayhap, she has not seen in this light before. First, let us take the babe in arms. There is nothing so sweet, so pretty, and so cunning in all its little ways, as “our” baby. Yet many a mother will, upon his being noticed by a visitor, laughingly tell you, “He’s a regular little rogue,” or, “He’s mamma’s bad boy,” then smother him with kisses, as if that were something to be proud of, or a thing to be commended. If you were coolly to inform one of these mothers that she has a very bad child, her mother-heart would be touched, to say the least. But is she not either teaching her child that it is a virtue to be bad, or else giving him his first lessons in falsehood and deceit? After the child is older, he may do something, or say something, which, though really wrong, proves to her mind his brightness and precocity. How often will the mother speak reprovingly, when by her countenance she betrays to him that she thinks it an immense joke!343 To be sure these antics may seem very interesting and harmless, but when we realize the fact that we are God’s under workers in the heavenly pottery, and are molding characters for time or eternity, we shall be very careful of our assent or dissent on all occasions. I remember one mother giving her child her first lesson in cruelty. It was on this wise: In taking off a brood of young chickens, she found one so badly deformed that, to end its sufferings, she thought best to kill it. So calling the oldest child,—a tender-hearted little thing,—she bade her kill it. Unable to control her emotions, the child burst into tears, and asked to be excused. At this juncture, a younger child came up, not too late, however, to hear mother laugh and call sister “chicken-hearted.” Then turning to the younger, said confidently, “—— will kill it!” This child was no doubt just as tender-hearted as her sister, but being thus praised, all the pride and self-importance that a four-year-old head and heart contained, rose, and smothering a sob, she quickly accomplished the deed. She will never forget the heavy little heart she carried then; but one thing led to another, until, upon reaching a thinking age, she was startled to find herself almost devoid of pity or compassion, having crushed them down simply because she fancied mother admired the trait in her. It has been said, and truly, that “mother’s eyes are baby’s skies; mother’s smiles are baby’s sunshine; mother’s tears are baby’s rain.” This holds good long after baby has dropped his long skirts, and, as it were, lost the scales from his eyes. So, dear mothers, in conclusion I would say, Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, and by all means, do everything to the glory of God, and you will never give a bad lesson, or leave a wrong impression. NATURE'S WHISPERINGS.
By Mary E. Bridewell
A COBWEB gemmed with morning dew
Is costless, yet divine;
So is the smile that bids us rise
Up higher life's incline. Sunshine's refreshing, and we learn
That e'en perplexing showers
Are nature's hidden crucibles
To manufacture flowers. A hearty hand clasp that uplifts
When hearts are sore opprest,
Is like the carol of a bird
That cradles care to rest. A diamond plucked from darkness blinks
And twinkles with delight,
And laughter, ever after greets
The sun, that gave it sight. So, all the world is brighter when
Its sunshine and its rain,
Embracing, form a rainbow arch,
To hide its clouds of pain.
—Mary E. Bridewell. Some time about June 1 a man will call at your house, and ask you questions. It may be that the questions that he asks will strike you as being very personal in nature. You will find him possessed of a raging curiosity as to your age, conditions, business status, family relations, and financial capabilities. He will even go so far as to inquire earnestly of you whether you are white or black. Perhaps he may exasperate you, but you must remember that he is a man and a brother, and refrain from hitting him with the furniture; for he is employed by the government to get you down on paper, and make you a part of the census of 1900. If you refrain from replying to any of his queries, perhaps he'll put you down as a deaf mute, for there is a special catalogue of persons thus afflicted, and also of the blind. But if you turn him out of your house by force, or commit any assault upon him, you will have your Uncle Sam to reckon with, and the next time your name appears on a list it may be on the roster of a jail. Officially the census begins on June 1. As there are not enough census enumerators to make the entire rounds on that day, or for many days following, in all probability the process will be stretched out a good deal, but all questions will be asked and answered with reference to that day. For instance, the enumerator may arrive at your house June 6 or 7 and find that you were married on June 2. Down you go on his list as a bachelor; your wife set down as a spinster, living at the residence of her parents. The census won't recognize your marriage at all because it took place after June 1. Similarly you may be dead since the first day of the month, but if the enumerator finds out that you were alive on that day you are part of the population of your State, and will eke out a fictitious existence in the sum total. Should a baby be born in your household after June 1, the child is non-existent so far as the census goes. Nothing, absolutely nothing, can happen to you between the first of June and the date of the enumerator's arrival. The law says so, and the law goes. When the enumerator comes to your house, he will identify himself by his official schedules, and also by a badge which he will wear on his waistcoat. He is bound by his instructions to be not only civil but patiently polite, and if he isn't you can write a complaint about him which, supposedly, will receive prompt attention. Special stress has been laid on this matter of politeness in the instruction to the enumerators, and they have been warned that any proof of bad manners on their part will result unpleasantly for them. Uncle Sam recognizes that the average American resents having to discuss his private affairs with outsiders, and has set out to make this census as little of an ordeal as possible. At the same time it is to be pretty sweeping in its scope. Here are some of the things which the enumerator will want to know about yourself and the inmates of your household, and he won't necessarily depend upon the evidence of his eyes, either: He will ask you outright your sex and color, and the fact that you wear trousers and a white skin won't excuse you from answering. He will ask you the date of your birth, month and year, whether you are single, married, widowed, or divorced; how long you have been married to your present consort, how many children you have had, and how many are now living; whether you are deaf, dumb, or blind; and he will require to know these things about each member of your family. You will be expected to tell where you were born; and if you are a native of another country, when you came to this country, and what steps, if any, you have taken to become a citizen. Then your business will come under consideration, and here is where the enumerators anticipate the greatest trouble. A business man generally considers his business as his own business and nobody else's, and prefers to tell almost anything else about himself rather than give details of the processes whereby he makes his living. But the government is just as much interested in your business as it is in your household. It wants to know just what your occupation is, and if you have more than one you will be listed under the head of that one from which you derive the chief part of your income. In case you aren't sure of that, the one you spend the most time and effort on will be that under which you will be described. You are to tell whether you own your own home, and if so, whether it is mortgaged. Also, you are expected to state whether you can read and write the English language. If you can't, but can read and write some other language, that is duly set down to your credit, and saves you from the stigma of illiteracy. When the census enumerator gets through with you, he will probably know things about you that your most intimate friend doesn't know. As soon as he has asked and received the answer to his last question, he is expected to leave your premises and promptly forget everything he has found out. If he doesn't forget it, or behave as if he had forgotten it, he will get into very hot water. Severe penalties are established for the punishment of any betrayal of information received by the enumerator. Whatever you tell him is a confidence between you and the government, and he is merely the apparatus through which the desired information passes. If he is false to his trust, and repeats to any person any information received in the performance of his duties, he may be fined five hundred dollars upon conviction. Not only may he not show his schedules to any person other than his superiors in the Census Office, but he must promptly destroy all imperfect copies. For returning false information about any person on his schedules he may be fined five thousand dollars and imprisoned for two years. Canvassing or advertising of any kind while in the discharge of his duties is forbidden to him, and he must do his work himself and not delegate it to any one else. He can not even take any one with him while making his rounds except another Census Office employee; nor can he take any interpreter except by special authority. Every precaution to protect the public has been taken. It is said that “the food value of the eggs consumed in a great city, is nearly as great as that of the beef eaten in the same city. This is a startling statement, but it is supported by the evidence of statistics taken by the Paris (France) city tax authorities.” The Indians of North America
It is estimated that there are on this continent “nearly 400,000 Indians. For 267,000 of these the United States is responsible. The Indians of this continent are divided among fifty-nine families, which are differentiated by their language stocks, and among them are eight hundred tribes. Some of these families are extinct, and others nearly so. Two-thirds of those now in existence are confined to the Pacific slope. The Algonquins, with whom the Pilgrim fathers fought, are the most important family. There are 100,000 survivors of these, but most of them live in Canada. There are 40,000 Eskimo, rapidly diminishing on account of disease and the use of liquor.” In an article on “Drugs and Character,” in the Independent for May 3, David Starr Jordan, president of Leland Stanford University, well says:— “All that drugs can do for the most part is to change the stress in the process of life. They can create nothing. They can not bring health. Health is not a change of stress. It is not a matter of appearances. Health is to the physical body what happiness is to the mind. No drug can take the place of exercise, and no hysteria of the imagination is a substitute for the sanity of health. The drug habit arises from the desire to make a short cut to health, and thus to happiness. It is a sign as well as a cause of personal degeneration.” JUNE STUDY OF THE FIELD: PART II.
“In the Land of Honduras.” (Text-book, June Magazine.) 1. In what respect is Honduras a near neighbor of the United States? 2. From what circumstances did Cape Gracias á Dios derive its name? 3. Mention some of the physical features of Honduras? 4. What is its area? Population? 5. Why are the country places so sparsely settled? 6. Describe Truxillo; its streets, sidewalks, and houses. 7. Mention some of the chief articles of export, and describe the market. 8. To what nationality does the Honduranean belong? 9. What are some of the difficulties of travel, especially during the winter months? THE THIRD ANGEL'S MESSAGE.
The Place of Sunday Legislation in the Making of the Image of the Beast.
THE BEAST was made in the Roman Empire. It was made in the union of an apostate Church with the Roman State. In our studies of this subject, we have seen that the only place where the Image of the Beast could be made, is in the United States; and the Image of the Beast, when made, will be a union of an apostate Church with this American State. In last week's study we saw that in that apostate Church in the Roman Empire, there had “arisen in the Church a false theocratical theory,” which aimed at “the formation of a sacerdotal State, subordinating the secular to itself in a false and outward way,” and that the bishops who held this false theocratical theory were determined “to make use of the power of the State for the furtherance of their aims.” For the past thirty-seven years there has been, in the United States, an organization of Church leaders holding precisely this same “false theocratical theory;” and, precisely as those of old, determined “to make use of the power of the State for the furtherance of their aims.” This organization, from its beginning, has been known as the National Reform Association. They hold that— “Every government, by equitable laws, is a government of God; a republic thus governed is of him, through the people, and is as truly and really a theocracy as the commonwealth of Israel. The refusal to acknowledge this fact is as much a piece of foolish impiety as that of the man who persists in refusing to acknowledge that God is the author of his existence.” The qualifying phrase “equitable laws” in that statement signifies only laws that conform to the will of these National Reformers. They declare that “a true theocracy is yet to come, . . . and humanity's weal depends upon the enthronement of Christ in law and law-makers;” and that “Christ shall be this world's king,—yea, verily, THIS WORLD'S KING in its realm of cause and effect,—king of its courts, its camps, its commerce,—king of its colleges and cloisters,—king of its customs and its constitutions. . . . The kingdom of Christ must enter the law through the gateway of politics.” In a previous study we saw that, in the making of the Beast, when the bishops had succeeded in getting the power of the State fully under their control for the furtherance of their aims, they held that the kingdom of God had come. The Church leaders in this nation to-day, who hold this same “false theocratical theory,” hold, likewise, that, when they succeed in getting the power of the State under their control, to be used at their will, for the furtherance of their own aims, the kingdom of God will be come. For, they hold that: “When we reach the summit, . . . the train will move out into the mild yet glorious light of millennial days, and the cry will be raised, ‘the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ.’” These leaders in the false theocratical movement of to-day, also, like those in the fourth century, are determined “to make use of the power of the State for the furtherance of their aims.” Consequently, from the inception of their movement, they have called for, and worked for, an amendment to the United States Constitution that would place all of what they call “Christian laws, institutions, and usages, upon an undeniable legal basis in the fundamental law of the land;” and then, having “inscribed this character on our Constitution,” by the national power “enforce upon all who come among us the laws of Christian morality.” And while calling for a Constitutional amendment, by which to make their purposes effective, they have been ready at all times to secure the recognition and the power of the government, by whatever means, Constitutional or unconstitutional, it could be accomplished. Accordingly, when, in 1892, the Supreme Court of the United States declared that “this is a Christian nation,” the National Reform combination instantly and gladly seized upon it, and made use of it in every possible way, for the furtherance of their aims. They declared, with glee, “This is a Christian nation.” That means Christian government, Christian laws, Christian institutions, Christian practices, Christian citizenship.” As in that original apostasy and false theocracy that made the Beast, the chief thing ever held in view was the exaltation of Sunday; so in this modern apostasy and false theocracy, the exaltation of Sunday has ever been the one chief aim. And as in the making of the Beast, Sunday legislation was the means by which the Church secured the power of the State by which to enforce upon all, even those that were not of the church, submission to the doctrine and discipline of the Church; so, in this making of the Image of the Beast, Sunday legislation is employed for precisely the same purpose, and in precisely the same way. Accordingly, when, by the Supreme Court declaration that “this is a Christian nation,” the national government was brought so entirely into accord with their will, they exclaimed at once: “This decision is vital to the Sunday question in all its aspects. . . . And this important decision rests upon the fundamental principle that religion is imbedded in the organic structure of the American government—a religion that recognizes, and is bound to maintain, Sunday as a day for rest and worship.” As in our previous study, we saw that, in the original false theocracy, no sooner was there made sure to the Catholic Church the recognition and support of the State, than she pushed herself upon the State with her demands for the establishment and enforcement of Sunday by law, and all in opposition to the Sabbath of the Lord; so, in this modern false theocracy, no sooner was published the declaration of the Supreme Court that “this is a Christian nation,” than these pushed themselves upon the national government, and under threats of political perdition upon all who refused, this false theocracy secured here the recognition and establishment of Sunday, and all in opposition to the Sabbath of the Lord. FOR, July 10, 1892, in the regular proceedings of the United States Senate, the Fourth Commandment was read from the Bible, as giving “the reasons” for the legislation under consideration, with respect to the Chicago World's Fair: “for the closing of the Exposition on the Sabbath day.” The proposed legislation was that day adopted. But, for fear that the Exposition would be really closed on the Sabbath, instead of on Sunday, two days afterward that which had been adopted was amended, so that the words, “Exposition on the Sabbath day,” were stricken out, and, in their place, were inserted the words, “the mechanical portion of the Exposition on the first day of the week, commonly called Sunday.” And this was done expressly, in the words of the legislation, that in the application of the fourth commandment to the closing of the Exposition on the Sabbath, this amendment was to decide that they should close the Exposition, not “on the last day of the week, in conformity with that observance which is made by the Israelites and the Seventh-day Baptists;” but “should close it on the first day of the week generally known as the Christian Sabbath.” This legislation passed into law by the approval of the House of Representatives and the executive of the nation. Thus, as in the work and establishment of that false theocracy of the fourth century, Sunday was by legislation, and by law, substituted for the Sabbath of the Lord; so in the work and establishment of this false theocracy of the nineteenth century, there has been, by legislation and by law, the substitution of Sunday for the Sabbath of the Lord. That, in the fourth century, and in the Roman State, was the making of the Beast. This, in the nineteenth century, and in this American State, is, step by step, and point by point, precisely like that of the fourth century: the very repetition of it; and is, therefore, nothing else than the making of the Image of the Beast. At the beginning of this article we stated that “the Image of the Beast, when made, will be a union of an apostate Church with the American State.” And now that all may see for themselves how certainly it is apostasy for Protestants to be engaged in this which we have related, we quote the following authoritative statements as to what Protestantism truly is in “the very essence”:— The principles contained in the celebrated Protest of the 19th of April, 1529, constitute the very essence of Protestantism. Now this Protest opposes two abuses of man in matters of faith; the first is the intrusion of the civil magistrate; and the second, the arbitrary authority of the church. Instead of these abuses Protestantism sets the power of conscience above the magistrate, and the authority of the word of God above the visible church. In the first place, it rejects the civil power in divine things, and says with the apostles and prophets, “We must obey God rather than man.” In the presence of Charles the Fifth it uplifts the crown of Jesus Christ.”—D'Aubigné, “History of the Reformation,” Book XIII, chapter 6, par. 18.