GENESEE EVANGELIST.—WhoIe No. 716.
fflfllg.
For the American Presbyterian.
THE CHRISTIAN IN PROSPECT OP DEATH.
The following lines were written when near the close
of life, by a female member of Pine Street Church. Di
recting them to a beloved sister, she said, “ They might
comfort her when she was gone.”
A still small voice oft whispers to my ear,
“The hour of thy departure ilraweth near; ”
Life's yielding bolts and bars must soon give way,
And the lone tenant must soon leave her house of Clay.
Mysterious inmate) spark of heav’nly birth,
And yet united to a clod of earth j
Who can describe the sund’vmg of those ties—
The throes of anguish when the body dies?
Distracting doubts and fears harass my mind, —
I look around for aid, no aid can find;
Must I, alone, the darksome valley tread,
With none to meet me in that hour of dread?
Soul, who on Jesus’ lore has long relied,
His rod and: staff thy trembling steps will guide i
Unto his faithful eare thyself resign,
And take the promise* —life and death are-thine.
Thou Who didst suffer death that man might l\Vf >
Soul, spirit, body, all to Thee 1 give,;
“Just as 1 am,” a sinner vile, undone, .
To Thee, O Lamb of God, to Thee I come!
* 1 Cor., ill., 22.
For the American Presbyterian-
JUDGE NOT.
BY DAVID BATES.
Judge not—the honest and sincere,
Wherever they may stand ;
Should hare a brother’s word to cheer
A brother’s helping hand.
Judge not—what If we judge aright,
A thousand .In the throng;
’Twere better left undone than blight.
One heart by judging wrong.
Judge not—the motive lies too deep
For other eyes to scan;
>Tis ours to watch our own, and keep
It pure towards God and man.
Judge not—although the deed he one,
By which one stood or fell;
It may be that we should have done
No better, if as well.
Judge not—’twere vain to search the cause
That underlies the deed;
The soul must answer to its laws,
And not to any creed.
Judge not—remember it was He
Who .came from heaven do, save,
And taught great truths so lovingly,
This precept also give.
ANNUAL MEETING OF THE MISSIONARY
ASSOCIATION OF THE CALVARY PEES
BYTERIAN CHURCH.
It was the privilege of the writer to be at the
Calvary Church—of which Dr. Jenkins is pastor
—on Wednesday evening, the 18th inst. Instead
of the usual lecture, some very interesting reports
were read and addresses made, relating to the city
mission work, in which that church, through its
missionary assboiation, are engaged.
First in order, came the report from the Tabor
Mission* by their missionary, the Rev. Geo. Van
Deurs. This was a paper of great interest, written
in an excellent spirit, and must have cheered the
hearts of all present who love to hear of such la
bors. It was very evident, that, while their mis
sionary placed so .low an estimate npon his own
exertions, they had yet been most faithful and un
tiring. In his report, some striking cases of con
version were detailed, and several instances were
cited of signal encouragement to faithful Christian
effort.
It seems that a preaching service is held in the
Chapel, at the corner of 17th and Fitzwater streets,
twice On the Sabbath, a prayer meeting on Thurs
day evening, and a Bible class for female adults
on Monday evening. Besides the services in the
Chapel, district prayer meetings are held, imdif
ferent private houses, on Tuesday and Friday even
ings, These wandering prayer meetings were
spoken of as intensely interesting, often as many
as fifty or sixty persons attending them, almost
literally filling the houses where they are held.
The Tabor Sunday-School was also referred to,
as being in a very encouraging state, containing,
as we have since been told, about SO teachers and
325 scholars, under the superintendence of Mr.
J. S. Cummings.
In this connection, a hearty acknowledgment
was made to the Ladies of the Boreas Society of
the ohuroh, for the valuable and most timely aid
which they had rendered to the destitute children
of the Tabor School —more than one hundred of
whom had been supplied with complete outfits
during the present season.
In sustaining the prayer meetings already re
ferred to, several of the brethren of the Calvary
Church, and some from other churches, have taken
a deep,and active interest, §ome of them have
also visited, two iby two, from house to house,
through all that neighbourhood. God has blessed
these brethren in weir labors, and they feel richly
rewarded for all their efforts.
The next report read, was from the pastor of the
Olivet Church, 1 Kev. E. D. Newberry. This church
was, for some time, wholly a mission enterprise,
sustained by the association. It is now fast be
coming self-supporting, and has enjoyed another
year of steady growth and prosperity. The Bun
day-school connected with it, numbers more than
500, so many that they have no longer sufficient
accommodations for all the classes.
After the reading of these reports, the executive
committee of the missionary association, through
their chairman, made a statement of the duties
which had been assigned them, of their successful
accomplishment, and of their hopes for the future,
in regard to the spirit which was to animate and j
control the friends of the association in all their
movements. Two other brethren followed with
very appropriate and earnest addresses upon the
great importance of mission and Sunday-school la
bor, in the destitute portions of our city, of its
encouragements and rewards, which no one could
have failed to appreciate, who has a reflecting tnind
and a Christian heart.
The pastor closed,.by flaoing in bold relief some
of the facts brought out jin thft repot'.ts in reference
to the Olivet ohurch and the Tabor mission and
school, and did not forget to refer to . the = Carmel
enterprise which the association had allowed »to
pass into other hands, and which was now carried
forward under auother name. He said that, as a
church, they could not but feel a deep interest in
its success, in its present important field, and could
not but rejoioe that such substantiulaid was going
from them for its support. Ho then reminded
his heareis that in all their labors to bring men
under the influence of the gospel, and thus be in
strumental in the salvation of souls, the lot of him
would be the most enviable of whom it could be
said, he has done what he could.
If the above meagre report of saidmeetingshall
serve to induce any who have not had a shape v ;in
city mission effort, to join ip sqeh labor, or fhall'
stimulate: those now engaged in itito. greaterzeal
gnj devotion, it will give joy to the heart ; of . ,
For the American iPfeßbyteSfilnJ:
#UBLIG ! LECTURES.'
. In our aities and large towns lecttfrfes' at this
season of the year*are of subhTrequent oeeuirreh<&,
that great care in a suitable 1 'selection*.,should be;
exercised.-' Rightly employed, are a'vsiltiaWe
•Means ’6# 'diffusing ‘knowledge, arid* att r imp6rKnt;
eletaent' bf Stir liberal systems of-feducatioh. ; ! As
:those wflb■'•fee-- habit of- attending lectures
ishStdS Ajirohlf exercise Bai?e in their’feeleelitfb,
■’bht' enjoy them to the hest advUntagej l will state
Gte -pliin Which I have pursued in tMese ; particulaife,
and also some methods which' I have_fouHd pro
fitable. ■ •" ■
In .the'first place, it-should be’ the aim of those
who attend lectures to’have a wise ‘choice, and se
lect the best—those upon subjects which are very
important to gain information. In’ this way by
exercising judgment, One soon finds what relates
to his best interest.
In the second place* it >is riot well to attend
more than'.can be thoroughly -prepared for, and
digested. To acquire durable knowledge from the
lecture, and well comprehend It, it is necessary to
have some previous knowledge upon the subject.
To hear a lecture without some previous ideas
upon the subject of it, is time thrown away, and
the hearer carries but little away worth retaining.
Medical and law students always prepare for a
lecture. : .
In the. never attend lectures solely
for the purpose of pleasure, and gratifying the
imagination by whatever fanciful and brilliant
pictures the lecturer may draw* but note down
the ideas, principles and facts, and pay attention
to the style and manner. By carefully exercising
the reason and judgment, the connecting links of
a series of thoughts will be observed.
In the fourth place, treasure up in the memory
any striking thought, eloquent sentence, or brilliant
illustration of the lecture. It may be of service
sometimes, and is a good discipline for, the me
mory.
In the fifth place, after returning from the
lecture, spend spme tim.e In reflecting upon it,
and in noting down the subject; how treated,
whatever important idpasj or facts have been learned,
and some of the best passages .and illustrations
which memory reveals. By persevering in suph
a course, the benefits ’will, soon be realjz.ed. A
good mental habit, .penetriitloU of thought, and
Such a course helps to form .the .good critic, and
enables him 1 to pass judgment upon the works of
others. The same rtijes are .applicable to feermpns
Und lectures on religious topics.
It is by giving earnest and thoughtful attention
to faithful sermons, that the Bible and its. lessons
become deeply fixed in the mind of the listener,
and may at last lead to his eternal happiness.
W. C. Winslow.
EPWARDS ON JRSTJEIGA*
TION.
Messks. Editors, —I wish through your paper ~
to propose to the Publication Committee of our
church-to republish, in a heat, yet cheap tract,
the discourse of -President Edwards on Hustut
cation, ,as originally published by himself, with
out -note or comment. , I know of nothing that
•.Would-be more useful at the present time tbantbe ..
publication and wide circulation, of this discourse.
In the first place: —It is a perspicuous state
ment and vindication of thedoctrine of justification,
as taught in the Scriptures, find .in the standards
of our church. It is .done in the best spirit, and ,
breathes throughout the.devoted piety of its dis
tinguished author. , .
In the second place:—lt is just such a manual
as we ministers need to aid U 3 in obtaining ; c!ep
.upd-,discriminatipgyiews of this doctrine,,as:tunght
-in the Holy Scriptures. It will hear frequent
reading and close, study. The Rev. Andrew Pul- ;
.ler,, whose works with those of Edwards, -Rwight (
, and Chalmers, : are, regarded ; as fhe best sepresen
i tatiops. of. Hew. School views, pays of -this dis
course,. “ The greatest, though not the only in- .
I struction I hayer receivedffrpm,human writings,
1 hasbeen from President Edwards’ Discourse on
Justification.” ' . .
In the ijthird .place publication of this
discourse, .in .the form mentioned, 4 an,d widely cir
culated, would be. the; means, not,only of dissemi
nating just Views On the doctrine of jastifiqaticm,-
butalso pfshowing our.sister Calvinistipchurches,
and: especially pur Old School brethren, that,we
i are sincere and honest ip .our professions .of .ad
hering to ihe,theology of .Edwards, JVlany now
.sneer; at .these professiops made in trpets and re
views. They affirm, that : on the doctrines of ori
ginal sin, the atonement, and justification, we have
, departed essentially from Edwards. > They .charge
us with dishouesfy—with a studied attempt to.de
cpiye .the church and the world, by professing
what we.know not. to be true—that while we gar
nish the sepulchre of Edwards, wp repudiate the
doctrines he taught, and are seeking to, supplant
them with modern inventions.
Now, the very. best way, to rebut this charge, do
away all suspicions, and show that our theology .is
what we profess it to be,—the theology of Ed
wards —is to publish and circulate, as our own views,
w.hat Edwards wrote and published himself. The
publishing committee could not do a greater ser
vice to the cause of truth, nor better subserve
the interests of the New School Presbyterian
Church, than to publish this discourse.
UPWAKD TENDENCIES Of TUB SOUL.
From the birth
Of mortal man, the sovereign Maker said,
That not in humble nor in brief delight,
Nor in the fading echoes of renown,
I’qwer’s purple robes, nor Pleasure’s flowery lap,
The soul should find enjoyment; but from these
Turning disdainful to an equal good,
Through all the ascent of things enlarge her view ;
Till every bound at length should disappear,
And infinite perfection close the scene
One whowasPbesent.
New School,
THE RECORDING ANGEL.
The angel of the Old Year closed his mission
with the closing’year. The heavenly Father had
sent Him, a companion to the year, to. attend the
foomteps of his 1 earthly children.
It was his Office to guide and restrain them, to
point them to the path of-duty, and lead their feet
therein; 'He. sbugbt'fevfer to win the hearts, which
‘ twihfed sp : ‘closfeiy 'arouhd'earthly things, to better
h'opesin'hfekveh; ‘
Ifi’hikhahd-hp in whibh li'e noted
"ev'erif'Ufet iti ttßrials ;; And not only did
' he notfe;Mfeif dctiobsjfiht fell their desires, thoughts
and words and' deeds* were
fMtHfttiKiffetffei'Wfed; !l "Ani hoW his work : is, com-
hook is penned,'and
” 'the J .’iijll' J rgturfi'ed J to heavfen.' ‘ Bis night
when from'the purity; fVhieh' sur
-roufi,ds;''thl‘^»hihd,'’ i h'e had l s|>effi^witH : rapid ; ahd
He had 4feen so mu jfr of ingratitude and disobMi-r
■-fence•uwdug’ th'e- 'erring 1 -dn : es , 'of' eortfl, fie fieferfed
the God of wutienpfrjWould no'longer bear with
his ’ ’Falteririgly and sadly, he
*pref§||r 1 efifenefefy 'of liefeveh Ms 'record;
a'n®pilaced‘with the : reeordsfif i
the past, not, to be :Jorgotten, hut- preserved, till
that ‘‘great s^ay Vi twfi%' the books shall he
opened.’' : ; ' •' u '" '
Another of the shining oflfetS—the swift-winged
messenger of God—-is sent with a book pure and
unsullied, to-ehronicle the deeds of the New Year.
This volume is already commenced, and is rapidly
filling. Every day adds a page, every hour and
moment, a line. What shall its contents he?
W-hat report of our lives shall it bear to heaven ?
Shall its fair pages be sullied with our sin; or
filled With 1 radiant lines telling of our holiness?
Bet ns ever be mindful of the presence of the
•recording Angel. : Let us remember that each act
is ever living, that each thought and word will
meet ns hereafter. • . , ' . . J
ar The"'i‘bc6rd"of past years is a sad memorial in
deed. Let not the present year be the witness of
so great r.emissness and sin. But let us strive so
■to follow Christ in love and obedience, that' the
record of each passing hour may be such as we
: may review with pleasure, in the light of eternity.
E. C. P. :
We tare ever thinking. Swift as the flitting
seconds come and go, from the mind, the light
winged thoughts. ; Wfe call them little things* and
are scarce conscious of their presence, and yet our
characters are according to the nature of our
thoughts.
We speak of our time running to waste. With
even more truth, it may :he said of our thoughts.
We. indulge ourselves in a multitude of thoughts,
frivolous and unworthy. If we desire to honor
onr Saviour, let us remember that not words and
deeds thoughts*
may also be an acceptable service. As our minds
dwell upon the ineffable beauty and sweetness of
Jesus, : let our thoughts; burdened With grateful
love, rise as sweet ineense to heaven. The l6ve
of Jesus,; let it be the dear theme, on which our
thoughts linger long, and to which they return
with ever new delight.
We express our love for a friend by saying, “I
think a great deal of you.” Let us thus express
our affectiqn for Jesus. We ; shall know that
Christ is enthroned in our hearts, when we find him
enthroned in our thoughts.. We need not , dpuht
our love to .Jesus, if: through the busy day and in
,the;still night, we are .ever keeping in mind the
memory of his goodness. : :
;If_ then .we have nothing .else to bring to the
Saviour, -for'"mercies countless;as the sands,” let
us bring our thoughts filled .with,the vision of the
Redeemer’s beauty and.glory, until "lost'in/won
, dor,-.love and praise,” and offer these as our sacri
fice.
;We want to bo like Jesus, Themore we'think
of oitim, the moie shall we increase in love and
likeness to .Him.. It is thus, th,at "beholding, as
in a glass, the glory, of the-. Lord, we are Lchangfed
into the same image, from-glory to glory;”
THE SINISTER AND .(JfJERgID MEMBER,
No matter how obscure may be
; your, sphere ; of .aptjpp an .Christendom, if, yojiiplace
yourself, and ;rgip«i|u without. sesljf-will. ip the Bi
vibe hand, there,may be some wondrously momen
tous result through your instrumehtaiity. Y.ou
may in the thought of the
Almighty handlwhieh stirred Bunyan’s brain in a
prison unto.thjieyolntiop of saying thpnghts through
continents, and generations. The quiet, ctbse-ure,
and comparatiyely unedueated man as he wrote in
prison" could not "have' dreamed of the greatness, of
his-mission. Many a wonderful and'time-lasting
result in the seientfficmnd political, as well as the
religipps worlds has, .accrued from the patient ten
sion calfli,t||'^wj, j w^ich l! was
not .unconscious in regard to after-millions of praisei
shouting‘heneficiajtiesj and; Sear reader, if in the
sight of-God you are truly humble, whether your
humanly-graded station be lowly or lofty, by a
.quiescent waiting upon- the Ph-yine will,,and a di
ligent acting it .out, you may do some great thing
for God and souls. .Ypur littleness disproves not
the'greatness of Divine power, nor your adapta
tion to the Divine choice for an instrument. ” He
hath chosen weak things. ," It may seem' tovyou
that past intellectual and moral heroism in: Zion
leaves no room for great things. Before
covery of the Western continent it did not seem
that there was room for it. So in regard to all
great inventions nnd discoveries, as of printihg,
i gravitation, steam, and telegraph power. So in
regard to a Butler’s Analogy, a Baxter’s. Saint’s
Best, as well as a Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress.
So in regard to the moral movement of a Luther,
a Galvin, a Knox, or a Wesley. In the nature of
- the case no: invention, discovery, or new concep
tion can .previously and a priori seem to have room
.adjusted to it in the,world. It is unknown-till it
' arrives; and mankind has not come to a standstill.
The current century has not proved the field to be
exhausted. Most of the worlds in population, is
. just opening to the gospel; and some new, pecu
liar blaze, for a masterly marshalling of .hearts,
heads, tongues, hands,-feet, and dollars, •to meet
the world’s great exigency, may break forth, not
withstanding the present worthy and faithfully
pressed-routine. • The-discoverer, the prince—en
tire servant under Christ, greater than the
of Waterloo,” and one instrumentally to make
greater changes, for earth than did he and Blucher
for Europe—this prince in Zion, little, and to re
main little in his own eyes, may now, an old
Church counsellor, be in a revery over the last
missionary report; or be may be some stripling on
his kpees in a log-qabin chamber; or a moneyless
college graduate reaching for his,scanty cloak, and
* for a pfen fo‘write “yes ” to a missionary secretary;
Akekside.
PHILADELPHIA, 2, 1860,
OUR THOUGHTS.
or the hard thinker, who las been weeks gather
ing in his brain the moral of the world
for one great timely induiafonor he may be a
money-making, shrewd, atsl comprehensive busi
ness man, who is so patiently studying to disci
pline himself to liberality .to be qualifying him
self for leader in a pepuni||y revolution for mis
sions. These brolendinei may reach the bye of
the future instrument, an'dj among greater means,
help to strengthen him irii|itient investigation of
what the World just now n#ads: - No preacher nor
ehureh member can tell may make him
the medium of at least thefgerm of the grand con
ception, provided he at onfe in every thing and
for ever, submits to the Myinehaud. He need
apt disqualify himself for Something large by neg
ligence'of obscure prayerful
glauoe be steadily
of prayerhe finds
heave with a great
the woirld.
'IONS. .
V :Th.e Recent fall , ractoryedi
fices of Massachusetts, is among the most calami
tous incidebts of‘ its class is our history' as a na
tion. We see —inLawrenTO, ! a hity growth
and vitality had been legated-as illustrations ■Of
pur characteristic enterprise and eneigy-r-a I.build
ing reared as the temple oi industry and ar.t,be
come the trap and the ove ij crushing, ppsoning,
and broilingits hapless in hates. And all, as is
now said, from the original insecurity of the con
struction. The mind shrinks from dwelling on
the horrors of the seene-wl»re youth, -gayety, and
inexperience, thrift, and figl, became, within so
brief, a space, the victims of-Hhe unhoiy greed of
gaiiij and so many a hpmeiwhs made childless, or
fatherless, or motherless; oj%had the inmates, who
quitted it as healthful and bread-winners
in the morning, returjneefito. tit at nightfall as
majmed and burdensomes cripples. i : i.;
Apdyetj in the rushing p,arite of ourieagetroess
to be rich, 1 and in tlie of our reckless
competition, how strong, tijg temptation may, ;be
to economize in all expendifcures that arc not re
presented by some yisjhl^rhsnlts,. iwhieh shall
remain, eyery, day aflgarpa|and glaring. : fPie
portions-of a lib’ge edifiee,£i!nk below the soil as
foundations, may, when massive, involve great
cost; and yet they do notgiike the upper walls,
meet the eyes of the tfav'ener that passes, or of
the operative that enters fheetrueture. Broad
and' deep .they are, made ouly .to be buried out of
sight. And Avarice whiskers, the un
seen. ."What is laid nout the eye of
criticism will deteet; but retrenchments.hero are
veiled from observation and remembrance. But
yet, iu truth, what more important -; than the
corner-stones and lowermost,layers,;bn whose:fiian
ness and r^sfs-, ; t}ie pf..the
•whole structure? The .inyik|ble is pot, therefore,
the immaterial. . ,A . hikJdeUg flaw Ih the anchor
fluke may lose for the.sMp ljn last hold in a storm.
An unseen leak in the hull, detected and widened
by the force of .the .tempest,-ijiay bury freight
and crew in the deep. ■fpjandationj ’whose
insufficiency is. snugly . below thg .sod,
may proclaim midst’, terribly Tatal and unsus
pected defects/by crushing those who have trusted
it, and by sending a thrill of anguish through, the
•land.' \ '7' ’; ..' .V, * ..7-;.'- 77. ..
We suspect that, terrible,as w.ere, the ,aspects
of this fate disaster,’ there ; • oeeur-
meti are in like manner economizing
foundations, and treating the unseen as the unim
portant. ’ ’
Our Lord said of all his hearers that they were
builders; : But some were rearing their structures
only on the sand;' and others, more wise, but
with .more expenditure of toil and care, dug deep,
anjl laid their foundation on the rock. The
■houses on the sapid might be even more spacious
abd : Showy thah 'tbosd that rested '.'oh' the rock.
And, until the time Of trial came, it might seem
that the buried-story ybf -the .edifice, which went
down for its suppoirt into'the firm and intractable
grapite, was Only, so much waste bf care, and time,
and material. But when the rain fell, and the
wind beat, and the waters rose, the deficiency of
■the rival .structure -came, o.ut, -and the ruiff was
irreparable. - ■ .. ■*. 1 -
Tet, is .it not a iCommon thing iin our days of
fancied charity and! religious'liberalism, ,to ex
aggerate the .practical, and to ignore the revealed,
and to insist that in the doctrines of the, gospel
there is little of moment? Many teachers .claim
that the mpnds ,qf Christianity; in its, beneficent
influence on society, inan, and earth, are its only
important and sital>porti<}|i‘'j land* ftbat; as-to the
questions of the Saviour's, own nature, and his
peculiar work, as to the native' pravity of our
race, and the Spirit’s office in conversion and re
generation, they are themes which may be post*
■poned and ignored. The world looks at outer and
above-ground walls and windows, and peaks and
chimney-pots; doctrines and creeds are matters of
the crypt, Cellar, and sunken wall,-with which an
Enlightened age sho.uld not soil its hands. .Give
tkte Trinity ! to the winds, and let the Atonement 1
,Be no longer 'a logomachy ;’khd as for original sin,
why allow it' longer to libel and scandalize the
race ? And yet, spite of all, it remains written:
“Other foundation can no man lay than that
which is laid.* 1 'None other name is given under
heaveh whereby we canbe saved. If the founda
tions be destroyed, wbhi spall ‘the righteous jlo ? ”
And the whole‘history of tbe'churett for eighteen
eerifuries iUa delusibn, if it : be;hot sure that true
'.doctrine; cordially received;‘hits ever marked the
eras of highest holiness and usefulness; and if dt
he : not equally certain that the ages whieh affected
'td insist bU morality and disparage orthodoxy,
have sombhbw’ contrived-always to lower the
moral standard, whilst affecting, only to abrogate
the doctrinal.- Protestant HbUa f nd;‘;Switzerland,
Germany; England, and America, bear
hete'cdnsentin’gancf unanimoustestimony.- ! :
, But there is; 1 it ma'yy be? yet 'another 1 and still
more secret way of economizing,-in the matter of
the fbundUfions of the soul’s hopes for eternity.
The creed may be exact, and it may be zealously
defended; and the morality may be outwardly Un
impeachable. But if the heart have known no
personal experience of its own sinfulness, and of
Christ’s infinite preciousness—if there have been
no true and inward renunciation of the favorite
idols, and Christ’s name is invoked while his pre
cepts are disobeyed—is not this also a fearful
r sacrifice of-our eternal interests,' whilst contenting
ourselves with the appearances, and professions,
and ceremonials of religion? The soul needs a
personal communion with a personal Saviour; and
as-well, also, a personal; conformity, or some par
ticipation of his Spirit and his image. -Ifahy
man have not the Spirit ;’of Christ, he is- none of
s his. This is the settlement of the human .spirit
upon the divine—the resting of the whole base
and frame of the soul’s hope on that Corner-Stone,
who, though disallowed and rejected bf men, is
the Appointed of the Father, bindingand upbear
ing to all eternity the whole church. From the
wreck of an earthly home there may be escape;
but to be surprised in the dying hour; and at the
judgment day, with the heart and hope aside from
that one deep and sure Rock of Ages, is ruin be
yond a peradventure, and guilt for which there is
neither pardon nor hope. And as to the interior
connection and mutual dependence of one truth
with and upon another truth, our Saviour himself
has taught us that the whole need no physician;
and the man blind to the consciousness of sin is
unable to welcome redemption, and that if a man
will do the Father’s will, he- Shall know of the
doctrine of the Son. The wider- the prospective
enterprises of the churches in our time may have
become, the more profoundly need, they to lay
I the foundation deep in the eternal'and unchange-
E. C. P.
some agonry
Ms brain
iblish.jit/to
/ «
able verities of God. And inwrought, by a per
sonal experience and under the Spirit’s influence,
into the very soul' of the regenerate, these great
truths become the impulse, the law, and the pledge
of the world’s'-recovery' to God
From >an interesting report in the .Christian
Inqpirer of a lecture by Mr. Gangooly.
The car of Juggernant h^s ; b,een misnnderstood.
There is no fixed rule to make this ear. It is
made in tile shape of a pyramid, sometirfies, very
expensive,..and. of great size. The .proof of the
advancement of the people in sculpture may be
read on .this car.' Beautifully carved idols are
placed, in the car. The ears are sometimes;* fifty
feet in height and sixteemfeet square at the base.
As it rises, it projects in'a great many steeples,
somewhat like those of a church. This car : took
its. origin from the fact, that Grishna, the god,
when .a child, lived in the village of Kouka. The
pcnnvited Qri|Ena to>®e present, .and sent
a cat to carry Him To %tie festival. TTo“edmmemo
■rato the fact,-the Hindoos, carry the image of
Grishna on,it,.to'(as they say) give him a good
,ride. As-to the self-saerifiee of the .Hindoos, it is
not type. The Hindoos believe that if;,a-s|nnpr
s]|ould‘give tjyo dr'thtoe pujls tp the ropes'eon
nected with the bai 5 , he will be 'taken : io ; heaven
by a similar ear: This false iidea ihdhees mady
of -the meniahTlindoos to. gb forward' and pull
these ears; and often, by their ..carelessness, they
fall under the wheels, and arc immolated.. I
once saw four perish in this Way, so that their
faces were-entirely obliterated. When caution is
taken; ho on’e is killed. When; a heavy ear gets
in .mp.t|on, it-efinnotobe stopped, being; drawn; by
.hosts of horses,, The ropes .with .which *hs people
pull the car ate five hundred .yards long. . .
' : When young; I wante'd to bdlp, draW the ear.
‘I rode on it, butwasafrai'dto draw it. •'FthougKt
that heaven .would be' thus secured; such."was my
earnestpegsundlpye for ; these. idols; It ; makes
mp smile.whfih I think ;Of, those,things. .Onceit
raiped and blew .very hard, and all the people left
the*ea9, exdept mysClf.'' I remained, and held the
i'dols : from being blown 'about by the wind, or
■being beaten down by the rain and Wind. The
very consciousness of doing something good made
me feel cheerful and contented. . •
Journal.
' This ear is drawn on the first day of the month,
and on the eighth day it is drawn back. The
latter is a matter of policy; it has no sanction in
the Hindoo scriptures. ’ : ;
; The rich man who dedicates the car. entertains
freely all the lower .castes, by .thousands, every
day. This, is the leadfipg feature .of Brahminism,
viz;, the carrying of 'aims to'the poor. All other
ceremonies do not amount to much if this is not
done. \
. A rich man promised : the: river Ganges on,e
thousand ripe mangoes. As the servants were
bearing the, basketsto thp river with This fruit,
(which' is the'riohest fruit in India,) a poor man,
tired: and hungry; :came> and asked for one of
the mango®. 'The servants bid hipi,-go about
his business. .He hazarded his life, and topk one
and ate it. At night, it is said that the river
Ganges, came to the .rich man. in. human fprm,
claiming the payment of nine,hundred and pinety
nipe mangoes, saying that it ha,d received ,but‘one.
In this,'beautiful form
;of charity. ! I .am sprty to sSy That it .’also teaches
r ili'ftifr^eTtiH^^'Br4p^b^j^4 : 3d 4 Ppfcihcip'othLer'
castes, you do right-. ' . ‘’’' 7
’ ,/I; will,'in closing, describe the ceremony of
hook-swinging. In this matter, the Brahmins
act'Cunningly. They do pot perform the cere
mony themselves, but let other people do it. The
hook-swinging takes place ip .honor pf Siva. A
great king is supposed to bp the founder of the
institution: You kupw, the monastic idea is,
that self-torture propitiates tlie Deity; here is the
same idea. Three days .the .worshippers of Siva
walk the streets, carrying with them a basket full
of threads; and, on meeting a man, they put one
of these threads around him, and compel him to
go with them. The hook-swinging is a horrible
performance. They take a long pole, as high and
thick as those used for the .electric telegraph.
The devotee kneels on the ground, and two iron
hooks, as thick as my little finger, are passed
through his back; he is then dragged to the pole,
and the people give him a swing. Qnce I,saw a
man with his .legs toward heaven, his head down-
ward. The people, who do this do not appear to
puffer. i : kriow not the reason. I felt such en
thusiasm, that I tried once to fasten one through
my own skin. My father said:—-“You must not
do it; it will displease the. god.”
Thpre is another fearful ceremony in this wor
ship. A man will take .a drea.dful fluf-headed
snake (I do not know what you would call it) and
pass it through his and, coiling it aroabd
him, perform a dance.
I have told you what I know to be the simple
truth. India is truly in ; a state of great degrada
tion. What are the idols, hooks, and festivals?
These are nothing-—are hot essential tosalvatiou.
;Let us-lie at the feet of Christ, and 'ever trust I !in
our heavenly Father.' The age of symbolism'has
passed,away; let us do whafcTye;Ganfo bringjihout
the, emancipation of. those who stijl bow,ip idols.
The innumerable ,hne an.d delipate tbreads.wbieb
true courtesy weaves, as wo.of and warp, constitute
the strength of the sociarSbric. Gohrtesy is love
,emb6died; and rendered' active and visible; and
love attraetsiinto unions and oneness, as when con
tiguous water drops rush into mutual bosoms and
form river and lie. Conventional obs,er.y£;ncqs
may drive men into combinations, as external
hoops force the staves, to become the barrel and
the cask.' ..'But the drawings Of love will' attract,
even through impediment and barrier, like the
magnetic influence that operates through the ves
sel upon'the’mimic floating swan.
Courtesy .is essentially different from politeness,
etiquette, manners. ;These may become .rhefe
marks of supreme selfishness and hatred; and
they may ; be only exhibitions for praise and profit.
Gourtesyhas, indeed, no, special form or manner,
and yet never wars with suitable and decorous
conventionalisms. Courtesy is inherent, and ever
the same; but forms of politeness are shaped by
accident; hence the etiquette now reigning may
be dethroned iii time, and the politeness of to-day
become rudeness l or vulgarity.
Courtesy cannot be; taught or learned; it cannot
be put on or laid aside. Courtesy is felt—mere
politeness seen; The former wins love—the latter
respect. The one bows gracefully and profoundly;
the other can lay down a life. To become polite,
read Chesterfield; to become courteous, read the
Bible. Abraham, the father of the faithful, and
Paul, the Apostle of the Gentiles, bowed indeed
with courtly grace, respectfully; but it was their
courtesy, manifest in look, word, tone, manner,
that revealed their heart love, and melfed other
hearts.
The writer was passing once along a narrow
pavement. A.young man, in coarse apparel, at
our approach, stepped aside, with great alacrity,
and into the mud edging the path. He did
not bow, he waved no band, be moved without
grace, and yet the whole was evident courtesy.
After passing, the thought arose, should we not
acknowledge and thank for behavior so unusual in
a young man in this brazen age. We went baek.
Offering our band, we said, “ Young man, shake
hands with me!” “Certainly, sir, bat why do
■you wish it?” ‘5 Because you are a kind-hearted
fellow, and a true gentleman; you ’ gave all the
path to me!” ' “ Sir, I would step iuto the gutter
for’ an "elderly ntaii !”-■ 1 “ God : bless ybti/ ybung
im'i
CUSTOMS IN INDIA.
COURTESY.
man! May you become a believer in our Lord
Jesus Christ, whose servant I profess myself; and
may we meet in heaven, if we never meet on
earth!”
Tears stood in the eyes of both; and when we
said good-by, our hands seemed to be a love-tie
binding our hearts; and we were, at that moment,
improved as citizens.and republicans, and without
becoming red, black, or of any other political-color.
Reader! “Be courteous!” ' ! -
Examiner.
A CHEERFUL VIEW OF THE FUTURE.
A cheerful view of the future is alone consistent
with a .true Christian life. “What,” says one,
“do you mean that- the widow, in her abode-of
want and wo; with aUrood of little ,ones to 'care
for, should take this cheerful view! ' May she not
be ,excused, though a-Christian, in cherishing some
doubts about the future?” No doubt soiiie sad
"thoughts will obtrude themselves upon her' mind,
but if true faith in God triumphs over her ad
(fte.wj&Jcn*
►•nextatfeek,'' and next year, just,'hecau%'He r who
“doetli all thipgs,;well” will be there to rule.
Her heart" rejoices, in the view, tind if she he poor,
with mauy dependent ones around her, it is about
all the cheerful view she can have in this dark
world. So that we say, yes; the poor widow, how
ever hard her lot, must trust in the widow’s God,
and be very thankful and, happy too, that there is
n widow’s God for her. What else can she do?
'Will she be 'any better or happier, have' any more
bread for hungry mouths, or grope in lesser, dark
ness by forebo.ding evil? Certainly not. Then
wisdom, not to say Christianity, bids her take this
cheerful view of time to ,come. And the same
is true of every probationer, though nothing but
clouds and storni meet his anxious gaze.
- The believer can but .see that such a view of
the future, alone, is honorable to God. He is the
sovereign Ruler and Disposer of events. All
things are ordered by .him. He doe,th his plea
sure in the armies of heaven, and among the in
habitants of the earth. His wisdom and goodness
are .concerned in. whatever comes to pass. Not a
.sparrow fulls to the' ground without his notice.
Even the very hairs of our heads are all numbered
by him. He “eareth” for us. This is the be
liever’s creed. Can he forebode evil, and live in
sadness, because lie beholds no light in his path,
without dishonoring God? Whether designed or
not, his doubts and forebodings imply that God
Will order or allow something that will not be for
the best—that all things will not work together
for good to the faithful. Here is the sin of dis
trust..
The saint should ever keep in view that sublime
and cheering truth—“ Jesus Christ, the same *
YESTERDAY, TO-DAY, AND FOREVER." However
sad tbe vicissitudes of bis life, or frowning the fu
ture, there is one direction-in which he may turn,
and behold no change. While earthly thrones I
and governments may be. overthrown by the revo
lutions of time or the assaults of contending ar
mies; the throne and reign of his Master and King
are eternal. Revolutions will not jostle it; time
will not remove its foundations; it will, stand from
everlasting to everlasting. His fellow-men may
be “ unstable as water,” blown about by every
wind of doctrine, betraying his confidence as often
as it is reposed in them, arid causing him to feel
ithat human nature is a cheat and a lie. ; But the
.Master whom he serves is the 1 same throughout
every age. His word is surems law, his promise
throne—“the same yesterday, to-day, and "for
ever!" How satisfactory to contemplate the un
waveringcafeer of even a mortal man! —one who
is never moved from right by the wiles and treache
ries, the allurements and threats, of a wicked
world; who pursues the eveu tenor of his way,
turning neither to the right hand nor left —true
to himself, his race, and his God!- He stands a
pillar of strength amid the shifting, changing
crowds of humanity around him. He, inspires
confidence and hope in desponding breasts, and
clusters thousands of hopeful hearts around him
self. And then, how sadly disappointed when
relentless death strikes him to the dust’! Yet that
fatal blow may fall at any moment, and this pillar
of society be toppled down. Think, then, of Him
who is the same “yesterday, to-day, and forever.”
Come' joy or sorrow, health or sickness, life or
death, He is the same, ever-present, ever-living,
ever-faithful Friend and Ruler. ; Love once be
stowed upon him is never disappointed by. a blow
from the destroyer. Faith onee reposed in him
is never cheated by fitful purposes. This is abun
dant cause for looking cheerfully into the future.
“ The Lord is my strength, I will not fear though
the earth be removed, and the mountains be east
into the midst of the sea.” - • - »«.;"• ~, -:
, Happy Home.
Mrs. H.sß. Stowe sends to the Independent of
last week, another of her excellent series of letters
frpm the Continent. , This time she describes her
visit to the Milan Cathedral, and the many Italian
tourists in this country will acknowledge the vi
vidness of her description:—
“You go on the roof, and you,walk upon the
battlements or ascend the highest tower, and you
seem to have passed high out of the region of com
mon-place things. The .beautiful plains of Lom
bardy: lie around you like a map, and the horizon
is glittering with the entire sweep of the Alps, like
a solemn senate of archangels with .diamond mail
and glittering crowns. The Mont Blane, Monte
Rosa with Ms countenance of light, the Jungfrau,
and all the weird brethren of the Obefland, rise
one after another to your delighted gaze, and the
range of the Tyrol goes far off into the blue of the
. sky, AH around, wherever you turn,.is the un
broken phalanx of mountains; and this temple,
■with its ten thousand’ statues atl standing in atti-
of ecstasy or'praise: Or prayer, seems like a
worthy altar, a fitting shrine;'fdr the great plain
which these beautiful mountains enclose; It seems
to give all Northern Italy to God. .
“The effect of these statues in this high, pure
air, in this solemn and glorious scenery, is pecu
liar.. They seem a meet companionship for these
high,regions., : They seem to stand exultant on
their spires, poised lightly as ethereal creatures,
the fit inhabitants of the blue, pure sky. One
feels that they have done with earthy one can
fancy them a hand of white-robed kings or priests,
for ever ministering in that great temple of which
the Alps are the walk, and the cathedral the heart
and centre.
“This afternoon, as I was there, it was, the time
of Evening Service, and the whole building at
times seemed to vibrate with the swell of the or
gan, and the rising and swelling of the Ambrosian
chant seemed surging and dying like the distant
sound of many waters. I stood and leaned against
the marble right over the choir, ’ where I could feel
the vibrations of the organ, and around me were
noble and thoughtful figures of men and women
who had been exalted there by no false or earthly
standard of honor, but for having led holy and no
ble lives —for humility, patienee, fortitude, con
stancy, for the victory that overcometh the world
—and I thought to myself how wholly and cha
racteristically Christian the whole thing was.
Suppose an old Roman, like Cato or Cicero for in
stance, to have fallen asleep in his day and sud
denly awakened in ours, and placed silently on the
top of this vast building, how would he be puzzled
to know what it commemorated. That it was a
solemn commemoration of something he could at
onee see. That crowds both of men and women
were thus exalted to .be had in .perpetual remem
brance would bo plain—but for what? One uni
versal expression in every face, whether uplifted
.or downcast; must, have struck him, as something
new, something different from what antique sculp-
Christian Intelligencer.
THU cathedral at milah.
VOL IV.—M -23;—-Whole No. 188.
ture ever dreamed. Who were these that pressed
the Cross to the breast with one hand and here the
palm-branch in the other? What are these with
this strange, sweet ecstasy that look upward?
Here, a woman stands on a wheel armed with
spikes, yet. looks joyfully heavenward. Here a
man stands in shackles, yet seems radiant with
joy. Truly Cicero would cry, ‘ Who are these and
whence come they?’ and the only answer could
be, “ These are they that have come out of great
tribulation, having washed their robes and made
them white in the blood of the Lamb!’”
A QUICK-WITTED SCOTCH WOMAN.
We read once a good story of a Catholic boy,
who questioned the priest about the order of con
fession, and' learning that the highest prelates in
the church confessed their sins directly to God,
concluded that he would confess to God also. The
following story shows the folly of prayer to the
Virgin Mary, when one has the privilege of prayer
to God himself, with humble faith:
4 Before the reformation in Scotland, a good old
' who had ecen better days, was re
duced to the necessity of taking a small moorland
farm under the Earl of Huntley, ancestor of the
Bake of Gordon. On this barren spot, the poor
widow and her two sons, by their unwearied indus
try, contrived to glean a scanty subsistence. But,
miserable as this dependence was, they were likely
soon to be deprived of it by the practices of a
greedy, ruthless land-steward, or factor, as he is
denominated in Scotland. This unfeeling scoun
drel strained every nerve to dispossess the widow
arid* her orphan children, and adopted an infallible
method to obtain his diabolical object—viz., raising
the rent almost beyond their means of paying.
In this emergency, she applied to several per
sons, who were said to possess the favor of the
Earl; but all in vain. Seeing ruin inevitable, she
summoned up resolution to wait on his lordship
himself. The Earl, who was a man of a bluff, open,
and generous disposition, received her with great
kindness, and, after some conversation, found her
to be a person of superior sense, and worth, and
expressed much surprise that the poorest of his
cot-farms should be occupied by one who had most
obviously moved in a higher sphere.
“But,” quoth the worthy nobleman, “you must
dine with me and my family to-day; I must let
them see of what sicker stuff, at least one of my
tenants is made.”
The astounded widow was very reluctant to ac
cept the invitation; but the Earl,would not be de
nied. She had the good fortune to make herself
equally acceptable to the Countess and all the fa
mily. After dinner, she was shown over the castle,
and finally was conducted into the chapel, where
there was no lack of images. But fearfully scan
dalized were the feelings of the good woman, when,
coming in front qf the Virgin Mary, she saw her
noble hostess and her children sink down before it,
as if a signal had been given for their immediate
prostration. When they had ended their devo
tions, they were equally astonished at the unbend
ing posture and horrified looks of their heretical
guest. ■
The Earl, who had been absent, now made his
appearance. Seeing how matters stood,' he asked
her how she could be so negleetful of her duty to
the Holy Virgin. . r ' .
“ Where could she find such an all-sufficient in
tercessor for sinful creatures, as the blessed mother
of our Lord?”
“ Please your honors,” quoth she, “alloo me to
answer ye in a hatnely Way, but by your favors, no
Vae'faif lcekemy frae-tbe-sti object- -'in -baa. I ' s »Ye
weel ken, rna Lord, that I hae a sma’ farm under
yere lordship; and for some years hard hae we
striven, my twa callants and rnysel, to mak the twa
ends meet. Few as our comforts hae been, they
hae been seasoned wi’ eonterit, whilk is a pleasant,
though uncommon drap in the cup of poverty; but
alake, noo we’re aboot to be turned oot of house,
and by a faetor, who shuts his ear to the widow’s
cry. I too hae made supplication to intercessors
of weel kent power and favor wi’ your honorable
lordship. I hae applied to little, Sandy Gordon,
and got neither solace nor satisfaction fra him. In
short, a’s proved vanity and vexation o’ speerit.
Before I and my bairns go forth, the sport of the
winds of heaven, I noo do what I suld liae dune at
the outset—l apply for remedy to the great Gor
don himself
This most judieious and touching appeal pro
duced an electrical effect"on.the noble persons to
whom it was made. The widow and her sons ob
tained a long lease of an excellent farm, on a rent
merely nominal; and it is believed that her de
scendants enjoy it to this very day.
The common people in Aberdeenshire believe
the conversion of the Gordon family from the Ro
,man,Catholic tp the Protestant religion, to be in
no small degree owing tp the above pithy and
"Seasonable address.— Canada Echo,
WE PASS FOE WHAT WE ARE
A man passes for what he is worth. Very idle
is all curiosity concerning other people’s estimate
of us, and all fear ,of remaining unknown is . not
less so. If a man knows that he can do any thing
—that he can do it better than any one eke—he
has a pledge of acknowledgment of that fact by
all persons. The world is fall of judgment days,
and into every assemblage that a man enters, in
every action that he attempts, be is gauged and
stamped. In every troop of boys that whoop and
run in each yard and square, a new comer is well
and' accurately weighed in the eourse of a few
days, and stamped with his right number, as if he
had undergone a formal trial of his strength, speed,
and temper. A stranger comes from a distant
school with a better dress, trinkets in his pockets,
with airs and pretensions. An older boy says to
himself, “It’s no use; we shall find him out to
morrow;”:
SUHSET.
Who is there that has ever looked up to the
golden gates of the resplendent West, and be
held' them arrayed in all their magnificence, and
watched the beautiful departure of the god of
day, and has not felt himself lifted, as it were,
from earth to heaven, and his feelings spiritual
ized by the contemplation of the scene? The
glories of sunset can be seen and enjoyed in their
greatest fulness only in the country. The winds
are now hushed among the foliage—the birds of
heaven have ceased their warbling —the voice of
the laborer is no longer heard —silence hangs like
a canopy upon the seene. At such a season, go
walk abroad in the country —carry along with you
no books to aid your reflections—go alone, or
with a friend —let your heart be open to the in
fluence of the seene —let its home-felt delights
rise up unrepressed—resign yourself freely and
entirely to the emotions of your own bosom and
if you have not been too far corrupted and con
taminated by intercourse with the world, you will
return a better, happier, holier man.
“We invoke the sun’s warm ray,
And we bless it all the day;
looking up as to a friend,
When its beams on us descend;
And we watch it down to the west
As it early sinks to rest;
Then, with sorrow at our hearts,
Sigh, “ How soon the sun departs! ”
SLEEP-
Come sleep, O sleep, the certain knot of peace,
The baiting-place of wit, the balm of wo,
The poor man’s wealth, the prisoner’s release,
Th’ in different judge between the high and low
* !! ' ' Sir Philtv Sidsey.
Ealph Waldo Emerson,