Earlier text: EXALTED CHARACTER OF THE CHRISTIAN PROFESSIONA VISION OF THE YEARS.
By Viola E. Smith
Methought I stood on a rock-bound coast,
While the years glided by, a mighty host,—
Glided silently, each like a sheeted ghost,
O'er the waters that men call Time.
I heard, as I stood on that rocky shore,
The swift flowing waters' rush and roar;
As they swept to the sea of Forevermore,
To another and unknown clime. There were voices that called from the shadowy main,
And they cried to the years, “Come back again;”
Though they call in tears, yet they call in vain,
For the years return no more.
Each one in its turn sad changes makes,
Some blessing sweet from our treasures takes,
And tarries not for the heart that breaks;
It passes, and comes no more. Then my heart grew as cold as the mist around,
And as drear as the desolate coast rock-bound,
And I heard but the mournful, dirge-like sound
Of the waters' ceaseless flow.
Was it true that beyond the dark clouds above,
There dwelt in the heavens a God of love?
And would not his heart to compassion move,
At the sight of his children's woe? But I looked to the years that were yet to be,
And each one was laden bounteously
With beautiful gifts more fair to see
Than those which had passed away;
And unto all those who had nobly striven,
Though anguish and grief their hearts had riven,
Instead of the lost, new treasures were given,
More precious by far than they. And lo, when the years had all passed by,
A radiant glory o'erspread the sky,
And the mist from the river was lifted high,
As an angel form drew near;
All trials and sorrows had fled like a dream,
And over the waters of Time's troubled stream,
With beauty and gladness and silvery gleam,
Had dawned th' Eternal Year. NOTHING TO GIVE?—WHY NOT!
By G. D. Ballou
There is no doubt that in some churches a spirit of pride manifested in a sense of shame at the thought of not putting anything on the contribution plate, does much to stimulate contributions for church work. Indeed, this spirit prevails to such an extent in many sections of the country that some people will not attend church if they have twenty-five or fifty cents to put in the plate. This spirit also has much to do with the size of the sums which appear on subscription lists for the support of ministers in popular churches. I have often heard ministers, when trying to raise funds, appeal to the pride of their congregations by telling them that if they did not give liberally the house of worship would soon become dilapidated, the services would be neglected, and property in town would depreciate greatly in value. Besides this, business men have told me that they were obliged to give liberally, on account of custom and prestige in the community. I am satisfied that, were it not for this popular system of extorting means from non-professors, preachers would have to seek a livelihood some other way. Nothing is more evident to a generous soul than that the returns we make to the Lord should be as freely made as his blessings have been bestowed. The air of heaven, the sunlight, rain, and the water bubbling up from the earth and flowing in a thousand streams to refresh weary earth and bless mankind, all come spontaneously. So with the blessings of God. Christ’s injunction was, “Freely ye have received, freely give.” We do not have to purchase forgiveness of sins and favor with Heaven. They are bestowed freely when the soul cries to God with humble penitence. When these favors have been bestowed on us, we are placed under greater obligations than ever before to him who has not only created us, but has so freely redeemed us from condemnation of sin. The hope of eternal life which such are led to cherish, still further increases the gratitude we owe to God. It must be plain that none can retain the favor of God without some suitable recognition of their obligation to him. Those only are godly or godlike men who follow the example of God. He bestows blessings upon men; and we must do the same with his children. Giving does not impoverish, and it will not impoverish his children. For spiritual blessing we bestow upon others, done in the spirit of Christ, God will bestow abundant blessings on us. “He that watereth shall be watered also himself.” Our personal moral obligations must be met between us and God; but obligations growing out of gospel blessings must be filled either by proclaiming the message of mercy ourselves, or by assisting others to proclaim it; we really have the spirit of Christ in us, when anxious to find ways and means for showing mercy and favor to our perishing fellow-men, making known to others God’s saving truth. Christians are not limited to one means, but they find it a pleasure to dedicate to the cause of Christ whatever talents they may possess. Appeals will not be necessary to bring means into the treasury, where men have any just sense of duty. Considering the flood of light which God has277 been giving to S. D. Adventists, one of the first things in connection with our work is that there are scores of individuals in our midst who never give so much as a dollar to carry on the work, from one year’s end to another, and they seldom or never put forth any effort to get others interested in present truth. Here is light that it should be the rejoicing of every heart to spread abroad, on account of its life-giving influence. How is it that any should fail to have a part in doing this? The reason is very plain why many do not help. They never plan for this work, but leave that for others to do; or if they do make plans, they forget and let their best intentions and purposes die. Their tithes are seldom paid, because they do not lay them aside as fast as means come in. They keep planning for worldly ends and schemes, and when the year is past they have nothing to show. They do not seem to hold themselves responsible to God for the use of their talents. They do not, like Paul, feel that they are debtors to their fellow-men on account of God’s grace and mercy (Rom. 1:14, 15); hence they have no personal sense of the obligation resting on them. Were we to follow these individuals through, you would often find them purchasing gewgaws, unnecessary articles of apparel, meats, useless articles of diet, and other things which perish with the using without doing any permanent good, and costing all the way from a few cents to several dollars. These absorb all the spare money, and none is left for the cause of Christ. Money is lost, too, in bargains with dishonest hucksters and peddlers, which a little calm forethought would have avoided; and the cases of perishing sinners going to eternal ruin are never thought of till then. Very few are so poor but they could put into the cause of God from five to twenty dollars each, and never miss it, by just stopping these little leaks. It is painful to think that these individuals are not providing any treasure in heaven, and will have little or no fruit to abound to their account. Phil. 4:17. There is a remedy for this evil. A little faithful planning for the cause of Christ will clear much of the rubbish of excuses on account of poverty. Those who will thus plan, even laying plans to devise ways for advancing the cause, will very soon develop better business talent than they have ever manifested before. Whatever one dwells upon wisely, as a course of action, not only strengthens the character, but makes the more easy of execution. A good way is to dedicate (besides the tithe) the proceeds of some certain piece of land or a certain amount of labor to some branch of the cause, and then strictly carry out the purpose. For your own soul’s sake and for the sake of others, plan to do something, and execute that plan. Those who have more means will find it to their advantage to do some earnest planning for the cause of Christ. I have known cases of wealthy men losing hundreds of dollars of their spare money by investing in some worldly scheme, desiring to increase their wealth while they neglect to make any provision for the present advancement of the truth. It pleases the Devil to see men contrive to make money now, and think of the cause of God by and by. The mind once fixed on worldly schemes, and that “by and by” for helping God’s cause, never comes. We must reverse this order. Now is the time to plan for eternal things, and by and by will be soon enough to lay up treasures here. Should not all our labors tend to the present advancement of the truth? To-morrow or next year may be too late. But we may now act so that our example may encourage some one else. Persons who do not plan for the salvation of fellow-men, will fail as surely as the merchant who does not plan for his business. Without system we are creatures of caprice and circumstance. God calls us to use both our brains and muscles in the cause. We call men “shiftless” in the affairs of the world who do not lay thoughtful plans and faithfully carry them out. May the converting power of the Holy Spirit so fill our hearts as to lead us all to planning for the cause of God. “If ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?” Luke 16:11. “THEY HAVE MADE VOID THY LAW.”
By Fred A. Lashier
During the labors of the past winter, in daily intercourse with the people, we find a tendency on the part of many to evade the claims of the Sabbath, by endeavoring to prove the abolition of the ten commandments, claiming that they were given at the same time and in the same manner that the ceremonial law was, and were binding only till the crucifixion of Christ. The following from “Great Controversy,” Vol. IV., describes the influence Satan has over the minds of the people at this time:— “Says the great deceiver: ‘We must watch those who are calling the attention of the people to the Sabbath of Jehovah; they will lead many to see the claims of the law of God; and the same light which reveals the true Sabbath, reveals also the ministration of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary and shows that the last work for salvation is now going forward. Hold the minds of the people in darkness till that work is ended, and we shall secure the world and the church. The Sabbath is the great question which is to decide the destiny of souls. We must exalt the Sabbath of our creating. . . . I will cause popular ministers to turn the attention of hearers from the commandments of God. The people accept their ministers’ explanations of Scripture, and do not investigate for themselves.’” When we see around us every day ministers and church members trying to evade the claims of the Sabbath, the words of the Psalmist come to us: “It is time for thee, Lord, to work, for they have made void thy law.” Ps. 119:126; the indifference with which the people look upon God’s holy law, stimulate us to greater zeal in presenting its claims. EASTER
By Roswell F. Cottrell
The festival called Easter is becoming more generally observed in the churches of various denominations than formerly. According to reports, the one just past was celebrated more generally than any previous one. Considering its increasing popularity, it may be well to inquire concerning its origin. That which our English translators have rendered Easter (Acts 12:4) is in the original the passover, a feast of the Jews. The early Christians of Jewish descent were very naturally inclined to celebrate their ancient festival. This always came on a certain day of the month, and consequently on different days of the week. But the western churches introduced the practice of keeping it always on Sunday, the Sunday following Good Friday. “Victor, bishop of Rome, in the year 196, took it upon him to impose the Roman custom upon all the churches, that is, to compel them to observe the passover upon Sunday.” He did not at that time succeed; but afterward “the Council of Nice (A. D. 325) ordered the solemnity of Easter to be kept everywhere on the same day, after the custom of Rome.” Thus it seems that Rome, the power that was to think to change times and laws (Dan. 7:25), is the authority for observing this festival always on Sunday, the day which has been substituted by the same authority in place of the Sabbath of the Lord. Easter as now held is not a Jewish institution. Like the Sunday Sabbath, it has pagan as well as papal features. Chambers’ Encyclopedia gives the following definition: “Easter (Ger. ostern, Fr. paque, Scot. pasch, from Gr. pascha, the passover), the festival of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, derives probably its Teutonic name from the festival of the goddess Ostara, in Anglo-Saxon Eastre, which the Saxons of old were wont to celebrate about the same season at which the Christian festival of Easter occurs.” Further he says: “Many of the popular observances connected with Easter are clearly of pagan origin. The goddess Ostara or Eastre seems to have been the personification of the morning or east, and also of the opening year or spring. The Anglo-Saxon name of April was Estormonath; and it is still known in Germany as Ostermonath. The worship of this being seems to have struck deep root in Northern Germany, and was brought into England by the Saxons. It continued to be celebrated in many parts of the north of Germany down to the beginning of the present century, by the kindling of bonfires and numerous other rites. . . . With her usual policy, the church endeavored to give a Christian significance to such of the rites as could not be rooted out; and in this case the conversion was particularly easy.” Would that the ten commandments were increasing in popularity as fast as is Easter. AN IMAGE TO THE BEAST.
By W. A. McCutchen
THAT we are soon to witness the fulfillment of Rev. 13:14, 15, no person who understands the meaning of this prophecy, and who notes the movements of the professed religious denominations of this country, can for a moment doubt. The readers of the REVIEW are aware of the movement on foot, by ministers of different denominations, for a union of all denominations on points held in common by all, for the purpose of having greater “influence, power, and strength;” hoping thereby to better facilitate their work, and accomplish certain measures which they could not, should they remain divided. They are also informed in regard to the efforts of the National Reform Association in trying to get an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, in order to legislate upon matters of conscience, and Christian duties. And while the Protestant denominations of our land are thus giving unmistakable evidence of their intentions, it is interesting to note some indications of the attitude assumed by Catholics toward this question, and the part they may be expected to act in the fulfillment of this prophecy. It is not unreasonable to suppose that the very people who represent the beast in the Old World, should take an active part in the formation of its image in the New; or that they should at least second the efforts of any others who do. If this be so, we must look for a greater intimacy between Catholics and Protestants than has existed heretofore; and the Protestants are certainly working for it as hard as any one. And while we can hardly expect the Catholics to yield to Protestantism, it is a lamentable fact that Protestants are conforming more and more to Catholicism, and the distinguishing features between them are fast disappearing; and having once gained the controlling influence in the nation, either by numbers or by sympathy from others, their ends are accomplished. Nor are they ignorant of this fact; for they are doing all they can to gain adherents, and to retain those they have, by establishing schools in every place possible; things of which they themselves speak. The following extracts, from the “Pastoral Letter of the Archbishop and Bishops of the United States, assembled in the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore,” published Dec. 21, 1884, in the Monitor, a Catholic paper of Galveston, Texas, furnish unmistakable testimony upon this point. After speaking of the power the Catholics have exercised in other countries, and of the beneficial results of the same, the letter says:— “We think we can claim to be acquainted with the laws, institutions, and spirit of the Catholic church, and with the laws, institutions, and spirit of our country; and we emphatically declare that there is no antagonism between them. A Catholic finds himself at home in the United States, . . . and the right minded American nowhere finds himself more at home than in the Catholic church.” Remember, these words are from the “Pastoral Letter,” and are the utterances of archbishops and bishops of the Catholic church in the great Plenary Council of Baltimore, and are taken from a Catholic paper. Who can fail to see the import of the language? Again we read:— “To argue that the Catholic church is hostile to our great republic, because she teaches that ‘there is no power but from God,’ . . . is evidently so illogical an accusation that we are astonished to hear it advanced by persons of ordinary intelligence.” Indeed, we would not suppose that the church would be hostile to our great republic when she expects to influence the government to the extent she hopes to, and to ask such favors from it. The real intent of this language is seen in what follows; and by their own words they betray themselves. The letter continues:— “No less illogical would be the notion that there is aught in the free spirit of our American institutions incompatible with perfect docility to the church of Christ.” Who can fail to see by this the intention of uniting the “church of Christ” (?) with our American institutions? But to show that this is what they mean I quote again:— “There is nothing in the character of the most liberty-loving American which could hinder his reverential submission to the divine authority of our Lord, or to the like authority delegated by him to his apostles and his church.” Further comment is unnecessary. As we watch these movements, may we be prepared for the great issues before us, and prove loyal to God. MORE WEAKNESS.
By R. S. Webber
I CLIP the following from an article by W. S., in the World’s Crisis:— “The children of Israel left Egypt on ‘the fifteenth day of the first month,’ and traveled under divine commandment. If the seventh-day Sabbath had been previously instituted, this first day’s journey could not have been on the Sabbath. From this starting point let us hunt for the Sabbath. As already seen, it was not on the fifteenth day of the month. Josephus says the Israelites journeyed ‘hastily’ from Egypt, and on the third day they came to a place called Baal-zephon on the Red Sea, where the Egyptians overtook them. And this agrees with Bible record, their first encampment being given at Succoth; the second at Etham; the third at Baal-zephon on the Red Sea (Num. 33:6); so they traveled on each of those three days, the 15th, 16th, and 17th; and then the Egyptians and Israelites lay encamped near each other ‘all the night,’ separated by a ‘cloud of darkness,’ and ‘the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night.’ Ex. 14:20, 21.— “So this army of six hundred thousand did not march over till the next day, the fourth, consequently that was not a Sabbath; they then went ‘three days’ journey in the wilderness’ (Num. 33:8), journeying on the 19th, 20th, and 21st. Here we have seven days’ journey without an intervening Sabbath; seven days of servile work under divine instruction. Did they break a Sabbath? No; for it was not yet instituted.” This attack upon the Sabbath seems a manifestation of unpardonable ignorance or a willful perversion of the plain teachings of the Bible and the testimony of Josephus; and the statements are calculated to deceive the common reader. The Bible does not teach that the Israelites traveled seven days in succession after leaving Egypt. It is very plain from what the Bible does say about it that they did not travel seven days in succession. Josephus does not teach it, but plainly teaches that they did not, as I shall show. The Bible tells the day and month on which they left Egypt, and tells the names of the places in which they pitched as they journeyed from Egypt to the Red Sea; but it does not say how long they were traveling. See Num. 33:1–8. The Bible does not tell how long they remained at the Red Sea before the Egyptians came up to them; but it does say that the Egyptians found them encamping there. Ex. 14:9. They had doubtless been there a few days, as will appear by and by. The Bible does not say that they immediately started on their journey three days into the wilderness, after they passed through the Red Sea; but it does say that they sang a song of deliverance. Ex. 15. It does not teach that they went through the Red Sea the fourth day after their departure from Egypt, and then journeyed the next day, the 19th day of the first month, as stated by W. S. There is not even a hint of such a thing in the whole Bible. The Egyptians stopped to bury their first-born that had been smitten by the Lord. Num. 33:4. Therefore they could not have arrived at the Red Sea until some time after Moses did. W. S.’s statement is very evidently false. But what does Josephus say? Does he say the Israelites and Egyptians encamped near each other all night, three days after the Israelites left Egypt?—No. Does he say that the Israelites went through the Red Sea upon the fourth day after their departure?—No. Speaking of the Israelites, he does say: “But as they went away hastily on the third day, they came to a place called Baal-zephon on the Red Sea.” But where were the Egyptians at this time? They were probably at home burying their dead, and perhaps preparing to follow Moses. Josephus says that they “wept and repented that they had treated them so hardly.” But, he says, “the Egyptians soon repented that the Hebrews were gone.” Then they raised an army. “The number that pursued after Moses was 600 chariots, with 50,000 horsemen, and 200,000 footmen, all armed.” This could not be done in one day; Josephus says that Moses was five days preparing to depart; that God commanded him to begin to prepare on the 10th day of the month. Now if the Egyptians278 were half of that time preparing their army to follow the Israelites, they could not possibly have been at the Red Sea in less than five or six days after the Israelites encamped there. Moses “went hastily” through a country “that was difficult to be traveled over, not only by armies but by single persons.” Pharaoh was so far behind, he made haste in pursuit of them, and asked of every one he met which way they were gone. See Ant. of the Jews, b. 2, chap. 15. It was impossible for Pharaoh to conduct his army, with 600 chariots, over the route described by Josephus, any faster than Moses marched his company. They both went hastily. When the Egyptians found the camp of the Israelites, they lay by them “all that night,” separated by a “cloud of darkness.” Then they all followed the Israelites into the sea and were destroyed. And as above shown, it is impossible to know what day this was, or how long it was after the departure of Moses. But what did the Israelites do the next day after the Egyptians were overthrown in the sea? W. S. says they went on their journey; but Josephus says: “Moses gathered together the weapons of the Egyptians, which were brought to the camp of the Hebrews by the current of the sea and the force of the winds assisting it. And he conjectured that this also happened by divine providence that so they might not be destitute of weapons. So when he had ordered the Hebrews to arm themselves with them, he led them to Mount Sinai.”—Ant. of the Jews, b. 2, chap. 16, sec. 6. Again he says that the Israelites, after the Egyptians were destroyed, “were employed all the night in the singing of hymns and in mirth. Moses also composed a song unto God, containing his praises and a thanksgiving for his kindness, in hexameter verse.” Therefore the statement by W. S. that the Israelites went through the sea upon the fourth day after their departure from Egypt, and traveled the next day on their journey, is certainly false. It is remarkable that any person should make such blunders, with such plain statements of Josephus before him setting forth the contrary. Some seem to suppose they do God’s will, if they make any statement, however false it may be, against his holy day. There seems to be a great diversity of opinion among the writers for the Crisis concerning the time of the institution of the Sabbath, and the persons for whose benefit it was instituted. Some of them claim it was instituted in the wilderness for the Israelites only. This is the opinion of W. S. Eld. T. M. Preble, in his book upon this question, says that the Sabbath was made for all mankind. And in the Crisis he once wrote:— “How happy we should be if from the heart we could all adopt the sacred truth brought out in the following lines:— “Day ever bless’d,
Thy light, thy rest,
I hail with glad emotion;
Ordained for man,
When time began,
For solace and devotion.”
Now as Eld. P. and W. S. are both prominent men, it might be interesting to the readers of the Crisis if they would publicly discuss their differences upon that point. But it is doubtful if they could make the point plainer than Jesus has done in Mark 2:27, and Moses in Gen. 2:1–3 and Ex. 20:8, 11. The effort of W. S. to prove that the Sabbath did not exist before the departure of the Israelites from Egypt, by falsely stating that the Israelites journeyed upon that day, is truly painful. The Word of God as a Guide to Living
—The word of God is given to us to teach us how to live. To have aid in right living, we must have it in memory and obey its teachings. Truth and Justice Are Eternal
—Truth and Justice are eternal,
Born with loveliness and light;
Wrong cannot exist forever
While there is a sunny right.
God, whose truth with love is swelling
Boundless to humanity,
Soon will sink all wrong and error
As the pebbles in the sea. A House Without Worship Is Unsafe
—A house in which God is not worshiped is not a safe place for a Christian. Humility as a Christian Grace
—Humility is a very desirable and useful Christian grace, but it never finds expression when you occupy a back seat in the prayer-meeting. “AN ADVENTER.”
By E. M. Dunlap
Not long since, upon entering a shop for the purpose of having some repairing done, I met an aged and esteemed member of the Baptist church (a minister), who was also having some work done. Seeing that he was idle, I took from my pocket a Signs and handed it to him, asking him to read while he was waiting, when the following conversation took place. Looking at the paper, he said, “Why, are you an Adventer?” D.—“Well, yes, sir; I’m an Adventist.” M.—“Well, you Adventers are very funny people. You’ve got your tracts and your papers everywhere—in every town and village, in every depot; and a man can’t even sit down on a stool to rest a minute but he gets a paper poked at him.” D.—“Yes, we are considered rather industrious, and a vigilant missionary people. I think if all the other churches would put forth the same effort, and use of their means as freely as we do, the cause of God would make more rapid progress.” M.—“But there’s one doctrine your folks cling to that I think is getting pretty old-fashioned.” M.—“Well, it’s that old Sabbath.” D.—“True, that is rather old-fashioned; in fact, it is one of the oldest institutions of God’s making. But don’t you think that right there is where the Church of to-day is losing her strength—getting entirely too new-fashioned?” M.—“Don’t know but it is to a certain extent; but I want to ask you one question; that is, with all your missionary work, with all your printing presses, powerful minds, and preaching and church work done, can you give me a reasonable explanation of the terrible fact that infidelity is so rampant? Why is it making such strides—making such rapid progress in our land?” D.—“Indeed, Mr. ——, I do not know whether I can give an answer which would be a ‘reasonable’ solution of the problem to you or not. I have, however, an answer which seems reasonable, that I will give you. Last night I heard your minister in the Baptist church make the assertion that ‘the Bible informs men, upon every page from beginning to end, that they have an immortal soul to save; and it tells me that I have an everlasting soul to save and fit for the skies.’ He not only made this assertion, but others equally absurd, which we hear from the pulpit every Sunday. He, no doubt, had all classes of hearers: humble, devout Christians; ignorant, honest people who believed every word he uttered; a class under conviction; a class seeking for the truth; a class laboring under doubts and perplexities—perhaps a little skeptical; and doubtless some really infidel. Leaving out two of the classes of hearers named in the list (ignorant persons and infidels), nothing else could be expected of the remaining classes but that they are, at least, occasional Bible readers; and it must be presumed that the majority of these are more than occasional Bible readers. Take, for instance, those under conviction, those seeking for the truth, and those inclined to skepticism. They return from meeting, take their Bibles, turn them leaf by leaf, but fail to find that a single line (much less ‘every page’) says anything of the kind. Neither do they find a line which says anything from which such a conclusion can be drawn. With teaching of this kind, and with such assertions pressed upon the people from day to day, is it any wonder that infidelity is making such rapid progress in our land? It is a wonder to me why people should wonder.” Diligence, Principle, and Christian Character Quotations
—Do not be in a hurry, but be diligent.—Macdonald. —“So act that your principle of action would bear to be made a law for the world.” —The best advertisement of a work-shop is first-class work. The strongest attraction to Christianity is a well made Christian character. —Searching the Scriptures “is like a person shaking a fruit tree,—first shaking the tree and gathering up the fruit that falls to the ground, and then shaking each branch, and afterward each twig of the branch, and last of all looking carefully under each limb to see that no fruit remains. In this way and in no other shall we find the hidden treasures that are in the Bible.”—Luther. The Interior of April 23, 1885, thus remarks concerning the war now threatened between England and Russia:— We have looked upon the threatened war between England and Russia with apprehension and sympathy for England. Great Britain is the most highly civilized, and under the ministry of Gladstone, the most Christian government, aside from our own, in the world. It is by far the richest of empires, and its wealth, so widely scattered, so much of it afloat, is more exposed to destruction than that of any other. The Russians, if they are not to be compared to the English at sea, could effect great destruction of the property of private individuals by swift piratical cruisers. The life of one Saxon is worth more to the world than that of a score of the barbarous Cossacks of Asia and Eastern Europe. When the Turkish Cossacks fight, the destruction of life is of little consequence to the world than that which results from the tribal wars in mid-Africa; but the shedding of British blood is a waste of a civilization of the highest value. That England should be compelled to grapple in destructive warfare with a huge barbaric power like Russia is a calamity to the whole world. Do Good Today, Not Tomorrow
—If you can do good to-day, defer it not till to-morrow. WHILE the great nations of Europe seem to be embarked upon a crusade of appropriating to themselves the territory of weaker nations the world over, the following sketch of the Congo country of Africa, over which there has been so much comment, will instruct and interest our readers. CONGO.—The new Congo State embraces the entire basin of the Congo, except the lower portion, now seized by Portugal—an area of 900,000 square miles, with a population of 40,000, according to Stanley’s estimate. After passing the cataracts on the lower Congo, the stream is navigable for nearly its entire length of 2,700 miles, the Congo being, not the longest, but, next to the Amazon, the mightiest water conduit in the world. The extension of the eastern limit to the shores of the Indian Ocean vastly increases this magnificent domain, making of it a territory such as has never fallen under the control of a single human being, especially one whose practice is peace and not conquest. Of course the actual geographic boundaries, as well as the de facto authority of the Association in this region, depends upon its ability to make peaceful acquisitions and to exercise rule by force and persuasion. The Conference does not attempt to define the form of government, nor the form or measure of authority. It simply says “hands off,” and gives free play to the exercise of the efficient policy inaugurated by the Association. As the primary motive of the International Association in penetrating the Congo region was geographical discovery, so the motive to which it appeals for further development is largely trade. The territory on the upper Congo is elevated, and the climate is good for a tropical one. Along the coast there is fever, but on the interior lands of the Association there is little need of sickness if the use of alcohol and exertion in the heat of the day are avoided. The thermometer ranges from 80 degrees. Mr. Stanley represents the region as rich in mines of copper and iron, and as containing deposits of gold and silver. It is abundant in gums, palm oil, and precious spices. It is adapted for corn, cotton, and rice. Its agricultural resources seem to be prodigious. The natives are eager for trade. Nearly three millions in value of goods were exported to the Congo region last year from England alone, while over five millions in value were withdrawn from the interior. Perhaps at the outset the benefits of trade, rather than the advantages of settlement, will be the reliance of the Congo State. Certainly it will be long before emigration would naturally turn from our own domain to the banks of the Congo.—Christian Work. The Interior, comparing the different forms of paganism and error so rife in these days, to the sowing of tares by the enemy while men slept, speaks of the new delusion called “Christian Science” as follows:— “But the husbandmen were never more surprised at the springing up in their fields, with a growth, of this new delusion called “Christian Science.” It seems incredible that so preposterous an idea should seize upon minds that are well disposed, and which were supposed to be reliable. It is in the same general direction as the “Faith Cure,” except that it is non-Christian—though it is very artistically sewed up in lamb-skin. One would say, in looking over its pretensions, that it is not worth giving any attention to, that it is too preposterous to be mischievous. But the fact is that it is killing churches, drawing away good people, and is being sedulously taught to children. It has this immense advantage over mere sentimental delusions, that there is a rich harvest of money in it. We hear of “practitioners” boasting of the large profits they are reaping from it. The deluded persons are mostly women. The fuel which these kinds of wild fire catch upon is abundant and increasing. Hypochondriasis, dyspepsia, nervous feebleness, and all the enervating influences which come of money, leisure, aimlessness, and any cause of melancholy, furnish it. To some extent, also, domestic trouble, bereavement, overwork, and care—anything exhausting or depressing, prepares the way for these religious delusions. Other factors in it are such “revival” performances as those of Harrison, the “boy-preacher.” Religious inebriety, such as Harrison seeks to produce, is liable to result in religious insanity, or to react into infidelity. There is no possible form of religious fanaticism, however absurd, which under such conditions would fail of rapid extension, if it were pushed by the employment of the press, and access obtained to those who are thus in a state of mental receptivity for enthusiasms.”