Christian Nation Vol. 18 1893 - Rparchives.org

May 31, 1893.A FAMILY PAPEE.lives and the destruction of much property.Louisville, Ky., suffered very severely.—Lord Salisbury Las been paying a visit toIreland. He is parading his policy in oppositionto Mr. Gladstone's Home Eule. One interestingfeature of the visit is the ex-premier'scounsel of peace and against riot. It is notlong since he and his ex-cabinet friends wereusing language of excitement to insurrection asstrong as any for which Nationalists sufferedarbitrary imprisonment.—Emin Pasha, the African explorer, forwhom Stanley led an expedition of rescue, hasfallen after a bitter struggle with Arabs.—The Miners' International Congress atBrussels voted a resolution ih favor of an eighthours day. The majority voted for a universalstrike to compel the adoption of the eight hoursday.—In the United States Circuit Court at NewYofk a Chinaman was adjudged to have noright to remain in this country. The judge•discharged him from the custody of the marshallas no provision had been made for deportation.—Ex-Secretary Foster has been carried downby too many ventures and a tight market. Hehas been compelled to assign, liabilities reaching$700,000, the securities in stock standingnominally at 11,000,000.REVIEW OF THE WEEK.A Sabbath Desecrated.As anticipated toward the close of the week,the Fair at Chicago was wide open on Sabbath.The papers are full of the accounts of the proceedings.Not only was the Fair the scene ofSabbath desecration, but-the city itself was ina ferment from morning till night. Transportationcompanies were taxed to their utmost.Trains, cars, steamers joined hands in heapinga publio dishonor upon the Lord's day, in feedingthe mouths of anarchists and satisfying thelusts of pleasure-Seekers. All the big buildingsexcept Uncle Sam's were open and bigcrowds drifted through them. The machineryrequired for the electric lights alone was inrunning order.- The buildings of most of theEastern states were closed, among them Massachusetts,New York, and Pennsylvania, NewJersey, and New Hampshire. Of the others,Louisiana and Missouri were closed, as alsoNorth and South Dakota, while Maine, Iowa,Florida, Washington, Illinois, and Kansas werewide open. Everything seems to have beengayly decorated, and every effort made to celebratethe victory won at the expense of c6nscience.Electric launches, gondolas, and wheelerswere kept constantly going all day. In theevening a big illumination attracted vastcrowds. Several morning papers say "altogetherthe firstopen Sunday at the Fair wasan overwhelming success." One feature of theopening commented on by some of the morningpapers is the fact that certain shows inwhat is known as the Midway Plaisance weresuffered to remain open. Many of these showsare of the variety theatre type. Th,e openingof such promiscuous resorts and side shows issomething that adds to the ignominy heapedupon the Sabbath by the opening of the gates.Intelligent public sentiment cannot but condemnsuch tactics, which bring dishonour uponthe nation. In defiance of every law of God,in open opposition to the enacted law of thiscountry, expressed in the act of the legislature,the local and national commissions have ledthe way and thousands have followed blindlyafter these blind guides, in bringing upon thiscountry the reproach of heaven as well as thescorn of the civilized world. We trust thateven yet the laws of this land will receive vindicationin the courts of justice, and that thefriends of law and order may triumph, bothfor God's sake and for the sake of man. Wheredoes the sin rest? Certainly upon the shouldersof professing Christians. From how manypulpits in the land has there gone forth no uncertainsound in defending Sabbath desecration! Here is how Sabbath opening is defendedfrom the pulpit. "' Sabbath was made for man,not man for the Sabbath.' If we take toostrict ground for Sabbath observance, there islikely to be au open, wanton, and sarcastic desecrationof the Sabbath. Christ set himselfagainst the superstitious idea of that day. ' Isit not lawful to do good on the Sabbath ?' Didnot Christ heal men on that day? If more librarieswere open on that day young menmight be lured to them who otherwise oftenseek saloons. Might not tha opening of theFair for a while on God's Day keep many fromtemptation, and tend to their religious culture?Sacred music would be well too." When thepulpit argues thus, how can we expect the peopleto argue otherwise ? The argument is asfar removed as possible from Bible-Christianity.Eeligion, after all, is only a matter ofworidly expediency. It is a makeshift to letman keep a decent exterior, and to give him asmany of the pleasures of the world as are consistentwith the good opinion of his fellowmen.The Sabbath was made for man, therefore mancan do with it as he pleases. Such a religionas this passes for the genuine stuff inmultitudes of churches and pulpits, we cankave nothing to do with it; it is nothing lessthan blasphemy of the Truth of God. Thereis a higher standard than expediency, the mindand will of God; there is a nobler end in man'slife than the so-called religious culture, namelvthe glory of his Maker and Eedeemer; andthere is a more sterling principle in the religionof Christianity than that of choosing theleast of two evils : for, of two evils, or of anynumber of evils Christianity choses NONE.Anti-Semitieiim.Professor Adler delivered a lecture on theabove subject in New York on Sabbath evening,tracing the feeling against the Hebrew race inEurope and America, explaining the causes ofits existence, and pointing out what he regardedas the proper means of eradicating theantagonism. He said that much of the hatredcherished toward the Jew is inborn, a greatmany inherited this natural dislike towardsthose who are identified with hostility to thegreat Prince of Peace. Such a gloomy hatredcherished from father to son has produced thepresent persecuting frenzy that would sweepthem ont of existence. Another strong causeof the anti-Jewish feeling, he says, is nationalism.The spirit of nationalism has grown upamid the varying fortunes which have accompaniedits growth until in the strength of racialand geographical peculiarities, there is noplace found for the all-exclusive race of Hebrewsthat remains distinct from all the races.Of the existence of the Jew it may be said inthe language of Hugh Miller, " It is not necessaryin order to overcome gigantic difficulties,that one's strength should be gigantic.Persevering exertion is much more thanstrength." The Jews have continued to existby indomitable perseverance that cannot beconquered by the semi-elastic civilizations ofmodern nationalities. England does not fear,is not jealous of the Jews, because her stabilityrests upon a strongly entrenched positionof national amalgamation. But Prussia andEussia, feeling that the elements of nationalstability are as unstable as the sand, are filledwith the desire to send to the wall that elementwhich they regard as the weakest andalso most hostile to autocratic traditions. Itis not the faith of the Jews that is in realityattacked, it is their refusal to assimilate themselvesto the conditions of semi-serf-despotickingdoms ; the attack upon the Jews is an evidenceof the social disquiet that pervades allcommunities and that claims for itself the rightto say who shall live and who shall not, andintolerantly arrogates to itself power to laydown the conditions of existence. The realreason of the opposition is to be found in social-causes,having their origin in the self-assertionof the aristocratic classes against anythingthat threatens the glory of the privilegedsections. Professor Adler thinks that the socialdefects of the Jews are to be found in lackof reserve and humilityaftd want of taciturn-^ness. Such a charge laid against the Jew ispeculiarly inappropriate. Whatever may besaid of the Jew as contrasted with the American,he can't be charged with undue loudness.and with want of keeping quiet. It is seldomthat the inoffensive Hebrew violates the senseof decorum in any civilized community. I hadthe privilege of searching the records of a Europeancity in whioh 20,000 Jews resided outof a population of 800,000 ; and on the recordsof complaints aud judgments in the policeand circuit courts there was not found the nameof a single Jew- The Hebrew has a deep senseof law and order, and in general may be characteriaedas a good citizen. It is -undoubtedthat the Jew bears with him the curse of therace that rejected and crucified the Lord ofglory. The marvellous providence that keptthem a united race till the birth of Messiah,still preserves them distinct in anticipation ofthe removal of the curse in the acceptance ofthe crucified One. The Jews are beloved forthe fathers' sakes, rejected for the incoming ofthe Gentiles. They are ono of blood with us,and we can't afford to persecute ; we ratherpity them and pray for their conversion to thatgospel which alone can make them the childrenof God.