Earlier text: NIGHTOur Mission
By Francis M. Wilcox
The mission of the ambassadors of Christ is not merely to warn men of the results of disobedience, but above all it is so to win them by love that they will turn from their evil ways and accept the salvation which there is in Christ Jesus. As Christian workers, we should bear this in mind. God has entrusted us with a great message, a message which carries with it a solemn warning. That message is positive and constructive in that it proclaims the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, and establishes a people and movement based upon the truths of the Word of God. It is negative and destructive in that it warns men of the dangers of rejecting God's grace, unmasks the specious deceptions of error, and shows the terrible results of rejecting God and his truth, and of following in the paths of sin. But while we should earnestly "contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints," let us seek to do this not egotistically, self-righteously, nor vaingloriously, but in love and humility. It is not enough merely that we should warn men. Our effort should be to save men,—save them by the warning which we give in love and fear. Of himself Christ says: "I came not to judge the world, but to save the world." And the apostle Paul adds, "Knowing . . . the terror of the Lord, we persuade men." Understanding from the Scriptures of truth the terrible wages of sin and the reward of unrighteousness, we should labor the more carefully that the words we speak, the spirit we manifest, our tone of voice, our expression of face, may prove, under God, a savor of life unto our fellows, and not a savor of death. The power of the truth is shown not in its condemnation of error, but in that it wins men from error's ways. The power of God's grace and the effectiveness of the scheme of salvation through the eternal ages will not consist in that, through the rejection of his grace, sin and sinners have been destroyed out of the universe of God, but in that men and women have been rescued from the power of Satan, and throughout endless eternity stand as the trophies of God's grace. Let us make it our mission among men to win them for Jesus. F. M. W. When the End of Sin Has Come
By C. M. S.
It is the purpose of God to rid his universe of sin. As truly as God lives, is it certain that a time will come when sin, sinners, and the originator of sin, Satan, will be, no more. The prophet Malachi reveals to us the coming of a time when there will be nothing left of the wicked but ashes. He says:— "For, behold, the day cometh, it burneth as a furnace; and all the proud, and all that work wickedness, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith Jehovah of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. . . . And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I make, saith Jehovah of hosts." Mal. 4:1-3. There is no intimation here that hell is an institution, presided over by Satan, in which he is given carte blanche to torment those committed to that region to the utmost limit of his fiendish ingenuity;8 no intimation that Satan is God's agent to see that all sinners are properly punished. But the teaching is as plain as words can make anything plain, that every being who is practising wickedness when that day comes, or who died unrepentant and unforgiven, is literally burned up, consumed, and exists no more. Now, it is evident that this includes Satan and all his hosts, as well as those whom he has deceived. The Lord tells us through the psalmist, "For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be; yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and he shall not be." Ps. 37:10. How could it be said that "the wicked shall not be," if he is actually in existence in torment, and being tormented by the chiefest of all wicked, the instigator of all crime? Satan has nothing to do with the infliction of punishment upon the impenitent wicked; but he and they both receive their punishment at the same time, and are destroyed together. The Word plainly declares this, in speaking of the work of Satan after his release from his imprisonment of a thousand years, immediately following the second coming of Christ. He gathers his deceived ones together, and then it is said of them: "They went up over the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down out of heaven, and devoured them." Rev. 20:9. If that did not end their existence, why would Inspiration use a word that indicates to us a complete cessation of existence? It might be questioned as to whether the original word really meant what we understand by devoured. The original word from which "devoured" is translated is katefagen, and means, ate up. The Emphatic Diaglott renders it "consumed." It is therefore certain that there remains nothing of those upon whom falls that fire from heaven. Satan does not rain that fire upon those who are rejected of God; but it is rained from heaven upon him and upon them together. Of the end of Satan's existence we read in another place: "All they that know thee among the peoples shall be astonished at thee: thou art become a terror, and thou shalt nevermore have any being." Eze. 28:19. To ascertain who it is that is thus addressed, read verses 13 to 19. How could even Inspiration speak more plainly than this in declaring the complete end of the author of sin? Notwithstanding these plain teachings of the Word of God, we read in one of our exchanges such words as these:— "The silly, deluded devotees of such superstition, such idolatry, such infamous blasphemy, . . . must all in the end, unless they repent in sackcloth and ashes, make their way down the slippery steps of time, and take their final leap at last into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the old devil will take special delight to wrap them around his fingers, gouge their eyes out, and toss them like a rubber ball around the black walls of the dark, dismal pandemonium, the sport of demoniacal millions, while the ages of oncoming eternities roll up from the dark realms below." Now, there is not a word in all the Bible about any such fiendish transactions as described in this quotation; not a word anywhere to indicate that Satan has anything whatever to do with the punishment of the wicked; or that he is God's agent in any sense to execute judgment upon the wicked. To use such language is to cast reproach upon our Saviour, to pervert the teachings of his Word, and even to debase the idea of religion in the minds of thoughtful men and women. Such teachings are dishonoring to our Maker, and a plain contradiction of all that he has said concerning the destiny of the wicked. They are, in effect, a nullification of that declaration of God's undying love for his creatures which reads: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." But God will have a clean universe, a praising universe. "And he shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more." Rev. 21:4. That is absolute. If there were to be a never-ending time of torment, this text of Scripture could not be true. Would there not be pain? Would there not be mourning? Would there not be crying, such crying as people have never done in this world? The objector may say that text refers only to the righteous. The text itself contains no such limitations, nor is any such limitation inferred from the context. But let us read another:— "And every created thing which is in the heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and on the sea, and all things that are in them, heard I saying, Unto him that sitteth on the throne, and unto the Lamb, be the blessing, and the honor, and the glory, and the dominion, forever and ever." Rev. 5:13. How could there be a place of torment in unending operation, where millions are undergoing the most frightful torture of mind and body, and at the same time that text of Scripture be true?—It would be impossible. That text brings to view a time when the wicked will have passed out of existence, and every creature in the universe will be experiencing the inexpressible joys of completed redemption. When God has made an end of sin, every creature that is left in existence in the universe will be praising him. The universe will be swept clean of everything that has brought pain upon men and sorrow to the heart of our loving Heavenly Father. No more sorrow, no more crying, no more pain, no more sin, no more death! No ever-burning hell, where friends, parents, or children, writhe in agony untold. That conception was a child of paganism and superstition, born under the blighting influences of the dark ages. It is not true, and never will be true. The God of love who has declared that he has no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, most certainly would not take pleasure in the eternal torment of him that sinneth. In that better land is only joy and peace and praise. Blessed country! What a glorious privilege to dwell therein! Following the Guidance of the Holy Spirit
Our Lord came to do his Father's will, to speak his Father's words, and to accomplish his Father's purpose. When he left his followers in this world, he left them to carry on the same work; therefore the need of the gift of the Holy Spirit, who was sent into the world for the purpose of leading Christ's followers into all truth. In other words, he was to help them keep in the footsteps of their Master, who is the way, the truth, and the life. We can therefore see the consistency of this divine admonition: “Wherefore, putting away falsehood, speak ye truth each one with his neighbor: for we are members one of another” (Eph. 4:25); and of this admonition also: “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and railing, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, even as God also in Christ forgave you.” Verses 31, 32. We can not do the work of God with the weapons of the adversary and under his training. The things here warned against are the weapons of Satan; and when we use them, we are practising under his teaching, drilling in his army. To do that is to travel in the way of death. Instead of that, let us listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, sent to direct us in ways of love, purity, righteousness, joy and peace. “Forgetting the things which are behind,” let us reach forward to those things which God has set before us, going forth into his work shod with the preparation of the gospel, armored with the helmet and shield and breastplate which God gives, and armed with the sword of the Spirit, conquering temptation, and winning souls for God's kingdom. The Sabbath Promulgated at Sinai
By Frederick M. Wilcox
THE sacred regard placed by the Lord upon the Sabbath is clearly indicated in the circumstances connected with its promulgation at Mt. Sinai. The children of Israel were encamped on the plain at the base of the mountain. Three days of solemn preparation were required in order to prepare them to receive the instruction which God, with his own voice, was about to impart. The camp itself was cleansed from every impurity. The people were required to wash their clothes, and to humble their hearts before the Lord. The mountain itself was sanctified, or set apart, by divine commandment; neither man nor beast was to go up into it, or even touch the border, under pain of death. A solemn hush pervaded the encampment. Awe and eager expectancy filled every heart. God was about to meet with his people. "And Mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly." Ex. 19:18. Under such circumstances as these, in connection with the greatest celestial display of almighty power which this earth ever witnessed, God delivered to the people his law of ten commandments. This law had been recognized before, as we have already seen; but because of prevailing iniquity in the earth, and in order that mankind might be left without excuse, God gave added emphasis to his requirements by uttering them with his own voice, under such circumstances as would impress the beholders, and all the world who knew of their deliverance, with the sacredness of their character. That nine of these commandments are moral in character the Christians of all ages have admitted. The first four express the duty of man to his Maker, the last six the duty of man to his fellows. In the bosom of this decalogue, buttressed9 before and behind, shut in on every side as if to guard it from the assaults which God knew would be made upon it, rests the Sabbath commandment. Speaking of the giving of the law and of the Sabbath at this time, Rev. James Gilfillan, a First-day observer, in his book "The Sabbath Viewed in the Light of Reason, Revelation; and History," page 287, beautifully expresses the honor shown the divine precepts:— The law of the ten commandments, uttered by "the great voice" of God, was also written by his own finger. It was too holy and glorious to be spoken "with the tongues of men and of angels," or to be taken down from the divine lips by any human amanuensis. The Lawgiver must proclaim his eternal law with his own mouth, and indite it with his own hand. Twice was it so written. It was inscribed on tablets of stone, and in this form deposited in the ark, with all the security which incorruptible shittim-wood, and gold overlaid within, without, and above, could provide, and under the overshadowing cherubim, and inviolable Shekinah. But no divine voice is heard announcing the laws of a temporary polity, or of a shadowy ritual; they are uttered in the ears of Moses alone. No divine finger traces their written characters; for this the hand of Moses is deemed adequate. They are committed to no secure and precious casket; but placed beside the ark, as things warranting less reverence and care, and ready to be removed. In all these honors of the ten "words," the fourth commandment fully shared. Prefaced by the same solemnities, attended by thunders and lightnings, articulated by the divine voice, all its words engraved by the divine finger, and entrusted to the sacred keeping of the ark, who could have any reason to imagine that the Sabbath was a Jewish rite, belonging entirely to a covenant which was to decay, wax old, and be ready to vanish away? The first words of the Sabbath commandment call the attention of the people to an institution already in existence. They were enjoined to "remember the Sabbath day." It was distinguished from the other days in that it was required to be kept holy, while the six days of the week were named as days of labor. The children of God were not only required to keep the Sabbath, but labor on the part of their sons and daughters, their servants and their cattle, was likewise prohibited; and the reason given as the basis of this injunction was found in the institution of the day in the beginning. "For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Ex. 20:11. The Jews, as God's special people at this time, were required to keep the Sabbath, not as an institution given to them primarily; they were exhorted to remember an institution already in existence, one which had descended to them from their fathers from the time of its bestowal in the garden of Eden. On page 45 of an old book called "The Sabbath," by Harmon Kingsbury, published in 1841, we find this excellent quotation from Professor Agnew regarding the perpetuity of the Sabbath institution, and of its application to the whole human family, including the Jewish people:— If we now advert to the end, or object, of the institution, we shall perceive it to be adapted equally to the whole human family, and not peculiarly to the Jews. And hence its perpetuity is inferred. Was it intended to relieve both man and beast from the wearisomeness of uninterrupted labor? They do all need it as much as the Israelites. Was it designed to be commemorative of the eternity, independence, self-existence, and all the glorious perfections of the Deity, as evinced in the work of his hands? Then are all, equally with the Jews, interested in this commemoration. Was it provided as a means of man's growth and establishment in holiness? Then does its end proclaim it loudly to be the birthright of every intelligent creature on God's earth, a common inheritance to all the sons and daughters of Adam. Who is the Jew, that his constitution alone, and that of his servants and beasts, require a regular return of freedom from the exhausting fatigues of constant labor? Who is the Jew, that he only may set apart one day in seven for singing the high praises of God; that he only is obliged to bear in remembrance the power, and wisdom, and goodness of God, displayed in his completed work of creation? Who is the Jew, that he only needs this preeminently blessed means of attaining and securing conformity with the image of God? No! Verily, you and I, and Adam and Noah, are, as much as he, interested in this heavenly attainment. We, equally with him, must commemorate the six days' work of Jehovah. And our constitution, as well as his, was so made as to require the rest of the Sabbath. There remains to the present a Sabbath rest for the children of God. May we remember it with rejoicing as it comes in the weekly cycle, and in its observation find rest and blessing and gladness through its great Author, the Lord Jesus Christ. Note and Comment
By Editor
Of the sweeping changes which are rapidly, and in many cases quite silently so far as the world is concerned, going forward in the Chinese empire, the United Presbyterian of May 16, 1912, says:— The queue, which was imposed upon them over two hundred years ago by their Manchu conquerors, and which, almost to a man, they had grown to think was a part of themselves, is gone to stay. The new government has come out strong against the custom of foot-binding, absolutely forbidding the same. The reform against opium smoking is equally enforced. They have changed from the lunar month to that of the sun, and, dating from this year, their year will be the same as the foreign. The better classes have almost to a man adopted the foreign hat, and those who can afford to are wearing the foreign shoes. Foreign tailoring establishments are springing up all over the city. I am even told that as soon as the government is properly established, all business will cease on the Sabbath day. This last does not mean that they are keeping the Sabbath day from a Christian standpoint, but because they recognize the importance of one day of rest. The Methodist Amusement Prohibition
By Editor
Speaking of the discussion now going on in the General Conference of the Methodist Church in Minneapolis regarding the revision of its church discipline on the question of amusements, the Lutheran of May 16, 1912, says:— How radically things have changed within the past generation is indicated by the report of the bishops of the Methodist Church on amusements, at the General Conference held in Minneapolis. Out of a total of 2,057 district superintendents, 1,356 report that the rule prohibiting dancing, card-playing, and theatergoing has proved entirely ineffective, and the bishops recommend the abolishment of the rule and a return to the more evangelical method of Wesley in dealing with the situation, leaving it to the conscience of the Christian to judge whether an amusement may or may not be indulged in with safety. The Lutheran suggests that it would be much better for the conference to deal with the principles involved rather than the details which concern the conscience alone, and leave to the individual the determining of where in his conduct the principle applies. This principle of dealing with evil must be followed in many cases on the part of the church. However, there are many in the Christian communion today who, on account of their past education, would fail properly to apply the principle. Against many forms of evil the church must decidedly take its position. The fact that the Methodist10Church admits that the rule prohibiting dancing, card-playing, and theatergoing has proved ineffective in so many cases shows, not that the standard of the church on these things is to be changed, but rather that the consciences of the communicants of that church should be educated up to a higher standard of Christian deportment and living. We observe by reports of the Methodist conference that there has been a refusal to make a change in this particular in the discipline of the church. Of this we are glad, because such a revision could not be regarded otherwise than as a lowering of its standard on the part of the Methodist Church in giving license to its large membership to engage in these questionable pleasures. SPEAKING of the meeting held by the Guardians of Liberty in Cincinnati, the Herald and Presbyter for May 29, 1912, of that city, says:— The Catholic Telegraph, of this city, is greatly excited over the organization, and denounces it in wild and intemperate language. It has no objection to such organizations as the Knights of Columbus, and St. John and St. Edward, and the Catholic Knights of America, with uniforms, rifles, and armories; but when it considers the existence of a simply patriotic order, it becomes as fluent with unbecoming expletives as if it were denouncing Freemasonry or the public schools, and for the same reason. These are institutions that Rome can not control. IN the recent Constitutional Convention of Ohio, Mr. Stanley E. Bowdle, a prominent member of the Cincinnati bar, raised an earnest warning against the great flood of immorality which is sweeping over the land, particularly as applied to the family relationship. According to the Herald of Life for June 6, 1912, he says:— Many men talk of approaching crises. The great crisis is here. It registers itself in the decay of family life, in the wide-spread doctrines of substantial free love, trial marriages, etc. The day is dominated by menacing egoism in matters of love. . . . Does a man tire of his wife? The law instantly affords relief. Has a wife discovered an affinity? The law eases her embarrassment. Are there children? Have they no rights?—No, the law suffers nothing to interfere with the “happiness” of these individuals. It facilitates their utter separation and divorce. But one further step remains in our national marital degradation. It is the allowance of divorce by mutual private agreement, which agreement, for the purpose of settling mutual, private rights, shall be recorded. This would accomplish two things; first, it would allow instant divorce and thus facilitate that “happiness” which Americans pursue and never overtake; and, second, such divorce by agreement would save the public from the scandalous details of marital disagreements, and the parties from much perjury. Surely, this utilitarian age will soon see the wisdom of this suggestion. Will the law in America ever descend to this? Why not? It panders now to the passions of men. It facilitates lust. To men weak in will, to men carried away by temporary desire or whim, it affords cheap and immediate relief. It cares nothing for the altar oath. “Till death [or divorce] do us part,” is the real oath taken. And this divorce situation has resulted in a grave misuse of our courts. Thousands have received their first lessons in perjury in divorce courts. No, the peril is not approaching; it is here. The national will is weakened, its convictions are badly broken-down. And this disease is locatable around the nation’s heart—its love, its domestic life. Mr. Bowdle feels that the remedy for this condition is to return to “the old anchorage of indissoluble marriage,” but even this we fear will not bring the desired reformation. The reform must take hold of the individual life. There must be a regeneration of the individual before there can be a regeneration of society. True moral reforms work from the heart outward. They can not be truly effected by legal enactment. What the world needs to-day is not more law, but more religion. WE are warned of the dangers of this great social evil, not alone by the ministers of the gospel, but by the officers of the law, who, above all others, see the practical workings of this menace to good morals. District Attorney Zabel, of Milwaukee, according to the Lutheran of June 6, 1912, bears this positive testimony:— Ninety per cent of the cases of juvenile delinquency—and the delinquency of other girls—that come to the district attorney's office, start in the dance-halls. The dance-hall situation is even worse than it has been painted. The dance-halls where liquor is not sold are ultimately the cause of more trouble than the others, because parents allow their children to go to them when they would not allow them to go to the halls where liquor is sold. Not that anything very bad happens in the dance-hall. It is simply a convenient meeting-place, where no introduction is required. From there the young girls are taken to other places. Young girls—good girls—go there night after night, but they do not remain good very long. They meet other girls, and unscrupulous men who do not hesitate to take advantage of them. The woman of the street and the young girl meet in the dance-hall on an equal footing, and the young girl soon becomes a woman of the street. I could name one down-town dance-hall that is primarily responsible for the ruin of one young girl for every day in the year, yes, and even more. The Lutheran for June 6, 1912, is responsible for the following figures with reference to divorces in the United States as compared with the countries of the old world:— There is a worm at the root of our tree—the tree of our American home life. We need to know just where it is and what it is doing. It is eating the life out of that first and greatest institution of God—the home. That worm is our divorce record. This record should make us Americans blush crimson with shame; for it places us in a class with heathen Japan, and separates us from all the so-called Christian nations. Here it is: In five years Japan had 93,949 divorces, or 215 to every 100,000 of the population. In the United States we had in the same period 55,502, or 73 to every 100,000 of the population. In the same time in Germany there were 8,680, or 15 to 100,000 population; in France, 8,864, or 23 to 100,000; in Italy, 810, or 3 to 100,000; in Norway, 120, or 6 to 100,000; in Sweden, 390, or 8 to every 100,000. WE should encourage a spirit of optimism instead of pessimism. To look on the bright side of life and make the best of circumstances; to see light shining through the darkness; to be happy, cheerful, and courageous; to sing instead of sigh,—this spirit has in it Christian helpfulness. It is better always to look on the bright side than into the darkness. It is better to smile than frown. But it is coming to be an unfortunate characteristic of this modern age that cheerfulness often descends into levity. Too often the sacred things of God and his Word are made the object of jest. The most solemn discourse is oftentimes interspersed with light and flippant remarks. This is not confined alone to men and women in the ordinary walks of life, but too often is seen in the experience of ministers of the gospel, men from whom, above all others, is naturally expected sobriety and dignity of deportment and speech. A report rendered by a committee at the Methodist General Conference, abounded in witticism, revealing the total lack of reverence. Sacred things were spoken of in commonplace and vulgar fashion. The manner in which the report was rendered brought out some earnest protests. Dr. J. M. Buckley is quoted as saying, “Never have I witnessed such a scene as this in all of the general conferences I have attended—laughter, witticism, and irreverence.” Such incidents are not always confined to Methodists alone. It is coming to be too generally the spirit of the age. Its influence has pervaded the lives of some Seventh-day Adventists. Let us put out of our lives foolishness, and seek to become strong, sober-minded, earnest, cheerful Christians. Archeology and Higher Criticism
ONE of the corner-stones of the higher criticism is that the book of Leviticus was written after the Babylonish captivity. The spade of the archeologist has now undermined that corner-stone. According to the Western Recorder, excavations at Elephantine, on the Upper Nile, show that the Jews had a temple there, and offered their sacrifices as prescribed in Leviticus, long before the Babylonish captivity. The so-called “mistakes of Moses” do not loom very large when compared with the real mistakes of the higher critics. Yet it is a surprising fact that this “gospel of disintegration and doubt” is permeating pulpit and pew in nearly every denomination in the world, ruining faith in the Word of God, and rapidly augmenting the ranks of infidelity. A Short Work
By Worthie Harris Holden
"The King's business requires haste." Not a moment to sleep
Nor o'er trials to weep
For the shadows are lengthening fast;
No time to look back,
Nor thy reaping to slack,
Till the sheaves are all garnered at last. There's no chance for defeat
With an armor complete
And an earnest of victory given:
Swift your banner uprear,
With the angel guard near
To defy all the foes of high heaven. Never call a retreat,
But with courage defeat
All whom Satan can summon to fight;
For the Lord is thy shield,
By his grace thou shalt wield
The sword of his word in his might. Daybreak in Russia
By G. Perk
THE clear light of the gospel is beginning to break through and dispel the darkness that reigns in the established church of Russia. Many of its members realize that its foundations are not firm, and are reaching out for something else. Even archbishops have made utterances to this effect, and have proposed to the holy synod that they undertake church reforms, because they recognize their powerlessness in the face of heathenism and the different sects of Russia. Naturally they have made but little progress with such propositions in the all-powerful synod, and the result has been that certain priests and over-priests have fallen into disgrace. But the stone has begun to move, and that august body will be mightily shaken. A conflict among themselves is beginning. Archimandrite Jefremm, from Tschita, Siberia, the powerful director of "true Russians," complains bitterly of the condition of the church in Siberia, for he sees it hard-pressed by different sects and by the heathen. Because of this he demands more rigorous laws and regulations against them; otherwise the "heathen" and those inclined to forsake the established church will triumph. On the other hand, another Russian clergyman writes from Siberia, in the Utrinjaga Swesda, an article which is worthy of notice. Among other things he says:— "But how was it then, we ask, with the Christian church in the first centuries, which flourished in spite of the fact that it did not have the mighty of this world on its side? Yea, on the contrary, all society, the ruling religion, and the powers of the world persecuted and slaughtered them; and yet for all that, the small handful of those followers of Christ conquered the heathen kingdoms. And how is it to-day? — Millions of Christians under the protection of very rigid laws and the sway of Christian governments, under the protection of spear and bullet, can not manage a proportionately small number of so-called 'heathen.' Is not this the reason that the God of heaven stood for the early Christian, but has turned away from us, as he did once from Saul, because he sees our unrighteousness, because we are not willing to walk in his precepts? Is not this the reason that those early Christians were mighty in the Spirit, and strong in faith, and pleased God by their deeds? The Christians of to-day, on the contrary, have quenched the Spirit, and are, therefore, weak in the Spirit and incapable of faith, and God is not pleased with their deeds. Is not this the reason that the former relied wholly upon Christ and the Holy Spirit, and the latter upon the sword and external power of force? "According to the opinion of Archimandrite Jefremm and his equals, in order to bring our faithful church into the first rank and uplift Christendom in general, it is absolutely essential to proclaim still more vigorous laws in favor of the church, to oppress the Jews more, to forbid the Jews to rebuild their temples, and not allow each one to worship God as he will, to oppress the different sects, as Baptists, Orthodox, etc., and in return for this to insure the clergy and the missionaries government support. "Still we should like to call their attention to the fact that all these measures have already been tried, were long practised, and to a certain extent are still practised, and in spite of all this, our church of the true faith does not shine; on the contrary, it fell,—I even allowed myself to say on account of violent measures, fell,—and could not shine; for 'they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.' Force calls out that which is unnatural,—protest,—and this often brings ruin. See how they are leaving the true church by thousands and millions. Why? — Because they seek for spirit and spiritual life, and where can it be found among us? Everything with us is fossilized, an effusion of unalterable forms; and all is benumbed with cold, instead of moving forward with life. And take those few who still remain,—the half-unbelieving and hesitating intelligences, the superstitious and unenlightened people, who worship as God Czar Nicholas and the vessels containing the perpetually burning oil, knowing naught but the form, and never having heard of a spiritual life,—who is to blame for their darkness, if not we, the shepherds, and, above all, our over-shepherds, who find no time to devote to the education of the people (for example, in the war against alcohol, and against a wrong adoration and notion of the holy pictures, anthropomorphism, etc.), yet at the same time are wire-pulling, and persecuting the shepherds who are friendly to the duma? They will not hear a word of church reforms. Why ought not Christendom to fall?" Thus are the Spirit of God and the holy angels working among us in Siberia; and although we shall, perhaps, have much to endure for the truth's sake, yet we know that the little flock which stands true to God's commands, and keeps the faith of Jesus, will win the final victory. Slowly and surely our work is advancing in this great country. Often it seems very difficult; but the Lord always opens the way, so that we walk dry-shod through the sea.