The New York Herald Newspaper, November 27, 1876, Page 8

' / 8 NEW YORK HERALD, MONDAY, NOVEMBEK 27, 1876—WITH SUPPLEMENT. THE LORDS DAY. Themes Expounded in Our Churches Yesterday. ADVANTAGES OF UNPOPULARITY Opening Services in the Grace Baptist Church. “PROVE ALL THINGS.” Rev. Father Farrelly at the Cathedral. Mr. Chadwick on the Good There Is in Evil. CHURCH OF THE DISCIPLES. THE BRUISED REED—SERMON bY MR, HEP- WortH, Mr, Hepworth preached morning trom the text—Matthew, xi1., 20—"'A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench till he send forth judgment unto victory.” Mr. Hepworth began his discourse by saying that every passage which discovers some new trait in the character of God to our consciousuess 18 Valuable; that more we can know ot God’s relations to us ihe more we ehall adore and iove. fo know nothing of Him is to live jn a starless night; to know all about Him that mind and heart can grasp is to live under the vertical sun of noonday. ‘The expression used in the text is Very mitense; it as not a simple assertion of Gou’s care, but expresses u vast deal more, Nothing geoms more worthless or more unworthy of any speciat care than a bruised reed, There is nothing in the universe about which wecan allord tobe more careléss, apparently, as to Whether it goes outor not than the spark of tire in smoking lax. And yet tho people in the olden umes, and in the golden age Christ Himself, asserted that God not brewk the bruised recd, He would not qucuch the smoking flax, but would neip the one and the oiber, And tf we look through the lens of the Father's character we see with most vivid the would eucour is intense aud all powerlul,’ aud that sis is not seattered in a’ general way over ihe crowd, but is directed on the ine und consciousness of each individual. erulizes, He always partisularizes, He never 8 but alWays suits the gilt tothe peeubar want coogition of the individual Who 18 to receive iL ‘Lue preachor then requested the close aticution o/ the | congregation while Hnug of spirisual it he tied to fiud iu Vue text some. et for thon, apd asp of spirit ual encouragement He said that, in the first place, | tue text taught us our entire and continual depenuence upon abiguer power; that we are spoken uf not as trees, robust and migaly, avle i resistuuce, strong in endurance, but rather as reeds, that may ve broken by any unusual wind, tat may be bruised if wot broken by avy of the ten thousand contingencies Which make up the sum of human lie. He went on to tay thatthe first element of true reiigion Was acon- Beiousuess of —uiter dependence upon God; that we cannot understavd the civine scheme of salvation or God's uisctplining providence un- loss we aug like a thread from God’s throue. No man can go through lile independently; then wuy hot usk heip irom the only ove Wo cau give it, tbe King above Kings aud the Lord above lords? He usked why We did not go to the source of ull power When we needed strength; why not look beyoud ‘ihe suars, With their Iveble light, tO Lhe sun of righteous. hess, which lilled the world with the biaze of His glory, When we staud in need of peace and cotolort.” Tho preacher remarked that some men were satistied wish ouly pnysicul gratificavion; that they seemed to need oiling eise; that ineir priacipie ot hte was the iaw of cause wud eleei—so much iabor mingled with so much sugaclly wil be so much gain; that such mou could but Understand the siguificance of a religious le, aod ihat they could not be made to leei the necessity of preparing iu the present tor that great change which is se iar off to them. But that, ou the other hand, if & man was thougnttul in lus best sense, 1 bis mind seemed w Wing its way wih eaglo tight to the heights above the earth, he would ask the questions, What ts to be when what Sas cume to Daughi, apd Wuat 8 the meaning of poverty and tne eternal struggle to waich human ou- ure 1s Goomed! The speaker said that theso were fuudarmental questions; nat if you asked them in th y tort or i Ye Helus of nature, or tu the iibrarie ose sbelves are Ulled with the wisdom of ages, or of tie granuest intellects of Ue age, they all give the swer, Uiut they know nothing about it; that it pigma toall But he came: to the At (reaced of Dothing eise but that hu that (here 11 us an element that can be S Usted by mothivg but the supernatural, v: vicrual, by Guu Minsell, and that rel Wrousiug wed Cuucating this part of a man’s nature, Me. uepworti bere enlarged at iengih upon our utter uey upoa some oue or sometuing, Whether we eK 1, und upon the conviction that senate itell In Upoh oUF consciousness of No With, and Urged lus people to turn to Him who Wo Usranied Us safely jor Lue present time aud the eieruai lie, and he said that religion consisted in con- ain Of oUF Utter dependence, aud IFICATION : that God sou bruised us, and fora good pur- Pore; Hat Mle Was BOL happibess, bUt discipline; that We CULE nut Lo look tor ess iu this ile but in the fie b. come; Meat it was beeessary to brurse te soul te ge. ibe sweotuess Out of it; that a soul unbruised Woe oltem careless and thoughtless, and that it wo wnly teel sure it Was God who bruised we could boot sland be patient, because 1 18 all for ur good; at Ube names by whieh Christ was called were uot types of vliet cruvity—the Lamo of God inl a White dove; and that He Who wept over fallen Jorupwieu is Weeping over lallen New York; tat Goo ony bruised us to take Us better; that few could ruvare prosperity wiivout a deercase oi spiritual renga; that sue that to succeed w tuat ¢ ie and sees the ought to say, ¥ Father, thou shai ihut 1 we can do paradox of the sicbes throuch the nd from the begioning, and ) God, thon urt my God! tead me, Thy wit be done |? thut, though We may sing in a minor key, und there imigh any a sad note in the Proiongea symphouy, vet when We pass ihrougt the ur volves shall break lorth mito praise, and to se we suallfud we bave been singing on earth mothe same key that the angels were singmg, fud (hat we shall say with them, “Holy, hoiy, hoy Lord God of Israel, Thy wil be dove.” TEMPLE, UNPOPULARITY-— SERMON y REV. O. B, FROTAINGHAM, Notwithstanding the sterm yesterday morning Musonte Temple was unusually wel: Hiled. inglum, without any text whatey tueme as the “Ad ceded as fullows:—That unpopularity vantages will not be considered. has, but at present the large advantages of unpopu- larity clan on attention, Christ is deseribed as say- in the Sermon vn the Mount, ‘Blessed are ye men shall revile ye and say all manner of evil things falsely of you tor my sake; rejoice and be ex- ceeding glad, for so persecuted they the prophets Wuich were before you." The assumption is that thd disciples of Jesus wore the élite of the worid; that they kept sivof irom the multitude, Why attempt to purity the world that 1s wiready cleany Why reform tho generation if {t weeds no further reformation? The very attitude of the disciples supposes that the world needs their office. Paul lays down for hims principle whieh seems on the tace of to the rules of Jesus. Paul's polic to offead to no purpose. When living with the Jews he conducted himself as a Jew. When among ihe Gentiles he would appeal to their rowgon and putloso- puy, but be apparently never yielded a siugle jot w itcame lo aquestion that touched lis own heart Now, agaiust this principle, that the multituge need no enlightenment or guidance, there stands an ONTO or THE ADVA r, announced his as its divad- ifthe o run counter was not necdiess!y proverb, which writes “Vox populi, cox De voice of the people 18 the voice of lencbes the opposite doctrine. One pre “Folow m the multitude,” the other says * rolul to avoid them.’? Whence the saying, Vox po tei, voa Det,” came it istmpossible to say. it toy have beeu (ae echo of some period of anaretiy, of soe. dixsoluvon, Whew sanctities were humbled 1b the dust. Wheresoever it originated the proverb caunot be tru Tas Voce of tue peonw cauuot ve the yore ot Gov, it is simply itupossible, except on the ground that humanity is itecll ivespired, The muitituse are the unevucated. Tey ure the bind, the seli-secking, the prejudieed—tie people who take their belie: on trust. | Lhey know nothing About history. The experiences of mati huught to them, Ynoir relations vo ui powtang to them. They ure vupertien live in the moment; live by the moment live themselves, and tur their lower selves oo, Cun the vor Voice of Lhe people be the voice of Gout Why, whe lustory of tho World is the Lisiory of cructiiod : aviours, to bis flock yesterday | satisfied | at wo never discovered belore, that His love | God never gen- | Mt Mr. Froth. | antages of Unpopularity,” and pro- | We ali feet that it | | constitat of persecoted saints, of teachers to whom a deaf ear bas been turned in proportion to their wiacom. And itis sometimes said that republicapisin rests ou that roverv-—*Voxr popalt, vox Dei,” That 18 a mistake. epublicanism Simpiy Fests on the impression that every class of people is entitled to bave a voice in the coucition of affairs, msomuch as all have a stake in the of society. Every class bas an equa! right, equal ttle to say bow the laws shall be framed, how the constitution of society shall be preserved. Republicanism — says, o one class 18 entitied to rule the world.’”’ Not the nobiest, not the best born, pot the most imtelli- gent; ay, nottue best. The suints, if thy could be found, bave no authority to govern the sinner, The siupers must have Voice in the udministration of al- fairs, Republicanism says, “Itis pot for us to say that the sceptre is in the hands of any single class of dynasties; ali Lave their ideas and must have leave to express them.” The republican does not say, "Vox popu, vox Dei.” He muy often feel that the Voice of the people ts the voice of the Evil Une. No matter. The majority speaks. Its voice is not the voice of God. Sul it must bo listened to and beard. Suppose, it such a supposition were possible, that every single voter Voted precisely the same ticket, would the voue 0! the people be the yoiee of God? Lt would certainly iudicate @ most extraordinary unanimity in the voice of the people—thut promised all that could be hoped for; but the voice of God, thas governs not the moinent but many moments, not the year but all years, that voice 18 eternal, And the Voice tu any single generation is temporal, The democrat may believe in total depravity, may believe that the majority are under the protection of an evil spirit. No matter, He must take the wajority for what itis and wai, The majority havea mgut to speak, and though it be the voice of ignorance and prejudice it must be listened to patiently until wisdom can be justified by her cuildren. In enumerating the advantages of unpopt ity the speaker sui Lu the first place, to be uapopular 18 to be released trom much oppression of the burdens of care; trom the respousi- biltly that comes with the administration of adairs. To ve popular is te be responsibie; is to be prugent and Watchful, Itts te cast the eye yound abous und say what other mea would bave us ¢ay. ‘The agitator always has to be in the minority from the very fact of lis being au agitator, The abolitionists a geterauon ago ivcurred a great deal of severe criticism because they kept themeelves aloof from politics. They would speak from party platforms; they wished no y entanglements; would not identity theme s with party advocacies, They planted them- $ upon their cisinteresteduess, They were their business was to leaven the sense of the community. It is the fasion to y thoso who are unpopular, Spare your pity, They sapplest people in the world. "Respect @ man, and itis the best compliment you can pay him. The | joy of soli-respect is greater than that of seli-esteem, 10 be able to Live alone; to be careless of te world’s upplanse; to be able to sit in darkness and sileitiy to press the great invisibie Hand that reaches dawn out Of light—that igeestasy. ‘The advantage of unpopularity i } | through the lund, every one with some {| carded hits | cated men and very young men r is (hat we are standing upon our feet—that we work with our own hands—vindicate our own characters us men and women. Au immense advantege, Aaother is that unpopularity compels us to detino our own belicis. “The popuiar man can take bis faith upon trust. The unpopular man cannot do so. The popular (aith—is It deserving of the name of convietion, trush or beiiel ? itis bused on phraseology. ‘Take the Apostles’ Creed, which ts recited in every Episcopahan church, What « (remendous row of statements itis! Weigh them one by one, how portentous they are! There is ng amindin Christendom to-day capacious enough to ake # siigle one of these statements, and yet school firls sixteen years old full in crowds upon their knecs in church and whisper the words of this bigh and grand statement us though it were a little ting to say. Suey are only words to them, The belieis of those young hearts it 18 not for me to describe in the way of describing the Aposties’ Cre: pravity of bumamiy is preached inn cry church to-day in New York, Istherea man \ho be- lieves it? Do we not trust our neighbor without re- gard to his creed? We ask, “ia he a man of his word? Wiilhe pay bis debts? Can we trust him f’? We know we can, otherwise the world would be paralyzed. Let us stand upon our betiels, not upon 4 pretended onc, Aman said to me the ther Gay, Why do you not have acreed? Why do you uot or- nize?” Tanswered, “1t 1s the aim and purpose of my Jile not to have acreed—not to have an organiza- iow.” It will be an evil day forAhe new faith when it begins to make delinitions to eXciude any on account of their persuasions, Jt will be the day of its ceath. ‘Yhe new faith will oe new ao longer; it will be thrown aside as a useless thing, The uew Jaith, always com- ing out of the region of fatth, will spread a pow earth over arch humanity, with a new heaven whose stars shall never set, PLYMOUTH CHURCH, PROVE ALL THINGS—SERMON BY THE REY. HENRY WARD BEECHER. The collection taken at Plymouth church yesterday was for the American Board of Foreign Missions, Mr. Beecher stated that there would be service in his church on Thursday next, and invited all the young people of the,congregation to join a singing ciass to be organized to-night in the lecture room by Mr. Heury Camp, director of the choir. “Prove all things, hold tast to that which is good,” was selected by Mr. Beecher as the text of his sermon. ‘The word “prove,” he sat, is so gencrully used among English speaking people in relation to argument or to a purely intellectual process by which evidence is ar- Tanged so as to produce a conviction that the passage in quesiion has been mainly used to induce men to listen readily to new truths or to unpalatable ones, Hun- dreds of thousands of sectaries go up and down new light upon an ordinance, some new notion avout prophecy, some picture with new meanings out of the Apocatypse or Daniel or Ezekiel or otherwhere. Men refuse to discuss them, and then 18 quoted the text, “Prove all things.” The Mesmers and the Spirnuai: ists und the upholders of ali eorts of theories dote upon tho passage in question. They would have the human mind a sort of riddle, and have men silting continually to “prove ali things.” Mr, Beecher contended that the words of the apostle had nothing whatever to do with intelicctual processes. They were spoken to people bot weil fitted for such processes, and by one who dis- {those who propounded such theories in bis time, The text wus an exboriation to put toa practical test evcry one of the great intesiectual truths or practices Which go to build upa inan toward the Siuture oi (ue Lord Jesus Chris, Mr, Beecher beid, however, that men ebould @e willing to receive new hgut on all subjects that 1% Was im their power to get wud SO jar as Inco have an opportunty of yi knowledge aud are averse to larger or better vie even ‘0 chuirely changed views, 80 lar the spiritot the text Was adverse to buem ; but itshuuld be boruc in aind that with respect to the ‘principles Wineh are applica to tue Divine nature and to tie Universal moral govern. ; Bi tment of Gou the exburtation was not to everybody to prove good. 11 these tings, and to hold fast that which wus For wen were hot qualified to ener upon the tion of many of these themes without a special tual, ahd, in many instances, a proiessional training, and to exhort them to euter into such thee ories 1s Father (o gall them into clowus and misis thi | auto light, based rn Tuis discussion requires a critical jadgmeut upon imuch previous knowledge and) with nethods; and when men without cal yut experience, enter upon these fields of exploration, they, so iar from reaching tue trath, very » just r enough to unseitie their vid veleis auy new ones, There is, suid Mr, wer, in modern mes and among our owu peu- “ exactly tis dauger. We are an inteiigent poopie, und we always have a suspicion of 1.) We are Drought up in schoothouses, aud we read the newspa- pers, and We quite scout tue idea that there isrnytuing this Side of the erowa uf God Uaat a Yankee may not pat bis hand apon, And so i lappens that uneaue Db into discussions uupou subjects that puzeie the brains of the must tal ented anu erudite putivsovhers, wo Lave cacu male sie One OL Lhe subjects Ube study of a lifetimes as the iarmers say, so ad ts ul) supe ster inte them xter, with the’ ure ay Hit to race with 1 ial investigators who is a lobster is Ww run a And we trequentiy ind men who have read a paragraph or two iu a newspaper ou a cer luiu subject una they anuounce authoritauvely that | they i come to the © D that und eo is | trae, w men who n the subject deep thought Wwe: modest and fear to veniure an opinion. If noustrated With they reply, “Weil, what would you ha Are we not enjoined to prove all tongs? Are We bot to Know mote than our fathers aid?’ On, if your tathers kuew less than ou what could wey have been! (simi The presumption favors Darwinism. will poriaps be surpri back-nanded biow at an not. Lwowid that ev Many d thut | should seem to give w mest sp.rit of inquiry. ldo au of you were {ut more profound than 3 ihe talent you have had been tramed to the mvestigation of truth, 1 y the interest of traih.that Latempt to dissuade men from busty, Tule wud atierly incompetent mielleetual pursuiis The notion taat every mau should read and fori some judgiment lor Limeeif ts ta cuntradicion of the experience of the whoie rac Those Who think (t uatanly to take anybody else's hotiou—who say they will not open their mouths and be ted with « spoon by aby ninister= were ridiculed by the preac The said, 20 Gai, chi ouvl oblig ted their fives to f out trocb in any depart. nent ol, and who based their studies upon, the lucginent of generations gone betore them, presumably would Know better (han these selolists who start va moment pd are over mM a moment Mr Beeeher rid.cuied the tdea of any an speaking nine ten jangu. wiles be spoke that wiieh it would bave mad said iu. here were many who advanced propositions to meet those wuieh Were submitted to them with + Blalds to Pewson (hat such 4S must be or must Dut ve The iu Which such a proposition could be made was very hmited indeed. One might say to an experienced mmicruscopiet who exhibited a drop of Water, Slands to reason that tere cannot be sue life us you speak ot in that water; for Lt can see Wis bot so.” There micht staud (oa weak Unirained Teason mauy things Whicu Would HOt stwad to others’ reason r said, a very lapnher a term “common sense Doe. trines Hejectea or justiied ov the ground ot cow seuse. No one bad @ very accurate wea « comMON Kouse Was, LUL the pltase itvel! 1n.dien mt. Lt Wasso auch of knowiled common to GuIVersal mankind. There was very hie Knowledge anives \omaukind. Tbe mom began Lo eXainine Int0 the subdivisioUs Ot socrety he would Gnd Urat cach has a sense which is common to that profession but hot to auy other, A moiher could not uppeal to the common sense of a rough soldier or 48 nkely to be tilled, | | But ho who, in imitation of the Great Teacher of m about the care of her children, for they had no seuse in common on that subject. . Mr. Beecher in conclusion reiterated that the prov- ing mentioned in the text had not reference to intel. lectual processes, He exhorted his hearers, instead of going into tracts and discussions on those subjects mentioned, to come to Christ by living up to His truths: auc prove their eflects upon their souls, ST. STEPHEN'S CHURCH. FRATERNAL CHARITY AS TAUGHT BY THE CATHOLIC CHURCH—AN ABLE EXPOSITION BY THE BEV. FATHER eDINAHAN, 0. P. The services at St. Stephen’s church yesterday morning began the fourth and last week of the mission by the Dominican Fathers. An immense congregation attended the high mass, of which the Rev, Father Colton was the celebrant, The mission sermon was preached by the Rev. Father Dinahap, who made the subject of his discourse ‘Fraternal Charity,” taxing his text from the twenty-second chapter of Matthew, Upon thie two mandates of charity, he said, dependeth the whole law and the prophets. There are ten precepts in the moral code, the Decalogue, and these precepts flow trom the two great mandates of charity as de- ductious trom principles, They are contained in and are fulfilled in fuidilling the two great mandates of charity—love God and love your noighbor. They are involved in one another, You cannot fulfil the one without fuldiling the other, For instance, you cannot love God unless you keep His commandments, and His principal commandment is, “Love thy neighbor as thyself,” And, again, you cannot jove the neighbor in charity unless you love him on account of God, and thus love Goa, There 18 a multiplicity anda unity inthe Godhead. There are three distinct per- sous—this is the multiplicity. These three distinct persons constitute one grand whole—bere is unity— the upily of the Godbead, The Trinity is a soctety— three distinct, sociai beings, united by an essential social bond im unity, Cuuses produce effects similar to themselves, and God in creating man only said— “Let us make man in our own image and likeness.”” Now the Trinity producing an effect similar to itself, God creating man in His image and likeness must have constituted man with his distinct indi- viduality, yeta constituent member of some grand whole, And such was the case, For man was created with his distinct idividuailty, similar to the persous of the Godhead, yet constituent of a grand whole like to the society of the Trinity—namely, the society of mankind, Aud hence man was created u social being and Leuce tor hii society 1s necessury, But no society can oxist without unity. Look again ub the Trinity— there ure three distinct persons united by an essential social bond in unity; now What is that bond? It is mutual love; it is the Hoy Ghost, the spirit of love, proceeding trom the mutual loves of the Father andthe Sop, Sothe Jove 1 human society is the mutual charity perpetually flowing between the mem- vers of wuich it 1s composed, Let man suppre: inclination to charity and Le sins aguimst nature; he conspires agaiust (he legitimate workings of his own being; jor While ho suppresses mutual charity in his suci! relations from & social being who loves be be- comes % misanthrope, who haces his fellow man. Suppress this mutntl charity. im yoar social relations, and that moment the seeds of disintegration are sown, dissension, strife and enmity will reign, dis- union will spread with the rapidity of a contagion; for then churity, the principle which sustains society, being ignored, the lie which amimates it being de: stroyed, the Loud which unites it being severed, neces- surily the social evifice must topple to the dust. But Society 1s necessary, und thereture mutual charity 1s necessary. It 18 generally more cusy to say woat a thing 1s hot than what it 1s, and therefore jet us see What is not charity, he love masitested among relauves 1s not charity; it is natural love. A man 1s benelicent;’ he —_lavishes the superabundance of his wealth upon his destitute teilows, simply vecause be notices the eye of the world gazing upon him; he is generous, because he kno that his wciion will be published to the world on the Wings of (he press, and so forth, and thus that nia name will be associated with the generous, the noble aod the good, This is not charity, This is our much boasted of, highiy fauded modern philanthropy, the grand fruits 0; Our retined modern civilizauon. It bears uo afltinity to chariy. Jt1s interested, merely human in its motive, und hence totally excla- sive in its exercise, Theu what 1s charity ? Ji is that which is vot natural in its motive por human in its end. Lt is that which makes no distinction in its choice, knows no exclusiveness tn its exercive. itis tolove man purely on account of God. it 18 to love the image, the representative, purely on account of the Got whom ho represents. This 18 true Christian charity, upen which dependeth the whoie iaw —which is the foundation of the Christan Chureh and the essence of the Christian religion, God said, “Love one another as I loved = you.’? The criterion of our charity must be the love who, God bus manifested toward us. Vur charity shonid exteud co ail without distinction; to those who are act of the bousehold of taitu as weil as to those Who cre; to ihose who are vot conaycted with us by relalionship oF triendship as well as thoxe who are; to the enemy as weil us to the irene: The neigubor Kiom wo are ¢.mniuaded te love must be cousitered not trom the pearness of relationship or Ireadship, but irem the common origiv and common destiny Ly Which We xr« ult vrothers, members of the oue great family, Yi, Peter +cnorts us to this charity by saying, e wl Uhiegs have Universal cuarity ” Love your neigubor is is} ¢ mandaie; bet we are tdid that the newhbor is mankind of vvery description, condition and nation, Here we belioid (he character that disimyuishes true charity irom modern pbi- lanthvory. Charity knows no distinction, and hence no exclusiveness, But philanthropy, incerested in 1s motive, 18 exclusive im ite rome, It hus, worked itself out into »yn.emat.zed organizations? fraternities, rings, outside of which it acknowledges nd brother aud difluses no sympathy. bet charny— noble, Christian charity, unconstrained, uyconfned— Ye universal m its action; {nits exercise 1b 1s us Wide ag the earth, and tts sympathy is as deep and .3 unt- Versul as the Wouknesses and the woes of mankind, Tho Pnarisces of oid read the law of Moses—iove your friends but hute your enemics, Modern seciety seeins Vo Lave assutned the eye-glass Of the Puarisee, lor i seems to read the law ol the saviour--luve your and hue your cnemies and revenge every ; niltcied. ~ Love your enemies, torgive your c.,emes seem to have no piace in the moral code which rules our modern society, Revenge seems to be totally effaced roi the vatalugue ot cranes, A man who resents an injury and repays it with dire revenge is acknowledged ax the conscien- tious observee of the cove or nouer, und bis bravery Merits tor him the praise and homage of the world. reiurns good for evi received, extends the hand of forgiveness to the evemy, 14 siiymauized ax a dastardly coward, und bis yiricous action excludes him from the ! society as weil ag the sympathy of the houvrable the brave and the noble o. th s world, ST. PATRICK’s CATHEDRAL, THE DAY OF JUDGMENT—sSERMON BY THE REV. FATHER YARRELLY, ‘The Cathedral was well attended yesterday. The officiating clergyman was the Rey. Father Kearney, and at the conclusion of the first gospel tho Rev. Father Farrelly preached u sermon, taking his text | from St. Matthew, xxiv., 15-35—"When, you shail see the abomination of desotation standing im the holy place thea they that are in Judea let them flee to the mountains.’ Tbe reverend gentieman said 1 was the last Sunday of the chureb’s year aud it was itung that the attention of the faithfal should be catled to the day of final judgment. In vo:ug this the Chureh de- siped to bring belore our minds the solemn event in order that we might enter mto un exsmipation of our- selves and puss Judgment on our own souls and com- re tut judgment wich the one Wo look forward to on the day of resurrection, This subject termed the most soleil truth and mystery of wil that the Church protesses, It was the one whicu struck the deepest root in our souls, Nearly all the other mysteries were of the past; they were uc- complished facts, and their Diessiugs and graces had been evjoyed. ‘The mystery of Lhe Last Judgment was one through Which we must pass, and ove im which we all are to be actors, We stood by our blessed Lord Spirit and tn faith at Bethichem, but we snail one day personally stand Vefore Him ac the judgment tribanai, We stood in spirit aud ih Jaitu with ihe apostles, but we shall siand ia body belore Christ on the last day, when He wii appear in ali His power and miyesty to judge the work. Ibis Was u most solemu trath worthy ihe most earnest cousideration. [ty was as certain as death and the grave, aud We Uuerelore sould pause to reject On the scenes that are te wicnersed on the day of tua: judgment, ob the scears that would accompany aud ioliow Uat great dey, ia wWoich we ghould take stich an active part, ‘The reverend genvewan then proceeded to g1ve a lucid explanation of tho Gospel in connection Wi his discourse, eetting forth the Various propuesies Of (ue Saviour and weir fuiniment. Every. Ahing that Christ had foretold tad been accomplished ; aniong them being the destruction of Jerusuiem, vot one stove baving been lett upon the other, The prophecy Which related (o the destruction of the world and the nai judgment had yet io be accomplished, History would wever tell us ot inat awia event We should theretore avail ourselves of the merey extended 10 ts by the A uty iM know mng the signs that would ocoompany the great event, and in order that we might be prepared We should meditate upon the signs that have beer forewid. The reverend preacher drew & Vivid and eloquent picture of the scene ot resurrec: tion, When the good Would be rewarded and the wicked punished, aud he urged the congregation to en- ter into jadgment of themeeives, in the hupe that by meditation the terrivie ordeal wound be fully realized and profited by. tle choral arrangements were, as usual, excelient, Conconi's mass veiny selected by Mr. 1. PB Malany, who, im the aveence of Protessur Schmitz, preside ut the organ, ALL SOULS' CHURCH. THE GOOD THERE 18 IN EVIL~S&RMON BY REY, 3. W. CHADWICK. Yesterday morning Rev. J. W. Chadwick, of Brook: lyn, preached # sermon at the above church, in phice vf Rev. H, W. Bellows, who was cisewhere engaged. He commenced with toe seriptural declaration of the od were i movil" by saying hough I make my bed in boli,” a8 David sad, Thou art there, At Jeast, be said, this i# What we thought ho said until the traasiators came aud toid us that for hel) we should read “underworld,” But, he eaid if David had written | Wes it, 16 would have been greatly, nobly, gloriously true, “IC 1 mage my bed in bell, Thou art there.” Let it be David or any other man, or the great whole of human- ity that is speaking, and let hell stand for any sort of suffering, sorrow or sin, And these words are greatly and forever true. God, or, 1f you choose, the good, is implied in every form of hell, in every form of suffer. ing and sip. ‘That, said he, is the gospel which ! preach to you this morning; the gospel, the glad tidings. I know tbat heretofore, in general, men Lave not accounted glad the tidings. I know that hereto- fore, in general, men have not accounted glad the tid- ings that 1 bring. The glad tidings have been any theory or speculation that has seemed to show that God was not responsible for any hell whatever, for suffering or sin. Of these theories and speculatior the most prominent, I need hardly tell you, is the theory or speculation which sets a devil over against God and makes Him responsible for all the suffering und all the sin there is anywhere in this world or any Other. This theory of a devil, he held, had played a very interesting part in the histo'y of the doctrine, declaration and the power of the devil, though it was notof the Christian nor even of Jewish origin. It cume into Clristianity through Judaism trom the Zoroastrian doctrines of the Persians, ‘the Christian devil, he sata, was the Persian spirit of evil under anothor name, Before the Persian intivence made itself felt ou Judaism there was no devil in the Jewish scheme of thought. It wag an alterthought to identify the serpent in cden with the devil 11 was an alter- thougut to identity with bim Satan in the book of Job, who isa servant of the Almignty, a sort of iutormer or attorney, who went arouvd prying into people’s thoughts and actions and reporting them from tume to time to his superior. In all tbe carher phases of the development oi the Christian theology the devil bad much greater promivence than he bas bad in the later. He bas been obliged to take a back seat in the | work of theological reconstruction, Aiter various il- Justrations of this point be came to the declaration that the deception touching the devil was justitied by bis sbamelui treatment of our first parents ip the Garden of Kuen. But, as might de supposed, the devil wus made mnaiicious by being thus outwitied. it ho could not have the souls of the elect he would sufll- ciently torment their bodies, “No malady comes to us from God, who is good and wishes us weil,” said Lu- i emanate from the devil, who is the cause of plagues, ievers and other troubles.” Pussing on, then, in additional ilustration of the truth of the point he was making, be came to say that there was bO theory Of evil so simple and taxing as was that o! a personal devii, Jobn stuart Mil expressed his aston- ishment that it had not been more popular. But it had been vastly popular, and was soto this day. Whony . IN OUR BROOKLYN PULPITS, it relieved God of ail responsibility in ‘the matter of radway accidents and shipwrecks and collisions of ocean stcumsbips with icebergs and similar calamities, 1a intt¥ence may be kuown, But, in iact, this theory of a personal devil helped us nota whit, ' Ir it saved Us the omnipotence of God it Was at the expenso of His gooduess. Either God was not imfnite or the devil was apartot Him, Alter further iliustration of his argu- ment he suia:—But let Franklin invent the lightning rou aud ho 1s harmiess, anu jet Morse invent the tele- grap and it posts anew the lund and ocean without Test, preventing with one timely message, it might be, & wur that would destroy more ‘men's lives thun the untutorea lightning had destroyed in twenty centuries, We might not dguy the possibe evil; bus, aguin, it was rooted in good anu good came out of it—oni of the evil, And steam, too; what a power of evil there might be’ im’ it! Yes, bur if it didn’ Uurst the weak —botler_ or telescope the train it wouldn’t carry the machinery or move the train as now itdid, He then passed to a consideration of the condition of the vegetable and animal worlds, with a view to showing the relations of good aud evil thereto, and, coming io the consideration ot man in his relations with bis fellow men, le dectared that tuere was not a s:ngie evil that had :avolved society to 4 cupsiderabie extent which had aot been the sign of some advance, not a means to still further advance. Iu conciusion, be sxid:—Granted that evil, so tar mankind 1s concerned, 1s only malaustment, Ther it devolves upon us to reduce this malajustment to the barrowest pussib/e limits, and to this end tbat weseek ditigentiy to learn wherein tt consists and then strenu- ously and patiently endeavor to correct it, 1n so (auras we are able, and to culist other men and wemen with us ju the sume great undertaking to make reason and the will of God, whicn 18 no other than the law of God, prevail. A NEW CHURCH. OPENING SERVICES IN THE GRACE BAPTIST CHURCH, FIFTY-THIRD STREET—SEITING UP THE STANDARD—SERMON BY THE REV. J. SPENCEK KENNARD, fhe Rev. J. Spencer Kennard having resigned the pastorate of the Pilgrim Baptist church, on Thirty- third street, one hundred or more members of the con- gregution, under the leadership of Mr. Randell and Rev. H. 8. Day, also severed their connocuon with that place of worship, at the samo time asking their old minister to form a new chureh farther uptown, The invitation was accepted by Mr. Kennard, and the handsome strusture on Filty-third street, near Seventh avenue, hereafter to be known ag the Grace Baptist churcb, was purchased for the use of the new conzre- gativo, The opening services were heid yesterday morning under the most encouraging auspices. Notwithstanding the forbidding character of the weather thero was hardly a seat vacant, and upon every face seemed to rest the smile of satisfaction and contentment. The pulpit was handsomely decked with flowers, and the rever- end gentleman was visibiy affected by the signs of encouragement upon every hand. His text was Psalma, xx., 5—*In the name of our God we will set up our banners.” ‘The Church of Christ, said Mr, Kennard, 1s distinctly achurch militant. Its life is one long campaign of conquest and defence, The sub- Jugation of a rebel world and the universal establish- ment of the kingdom of Christ are essenual pots of i88 work, ‘fo take advanced positions and hold them, to go from stremgth to strengh, toadd vietury to vic tory, should be its current history. there is very much Jand to be possessed, and the Church ia able to” go up and take i, Nowhere does the usurper hold a moro aefiant front tuan bere in New York. Here is his seat. Here, by many a deadly tascivation, he holds captive a multitude vt sous for whom Curtst died, But here also ue Church is and the Gospel, Aud the light is gomg on with varying success, We are here this Morbibg (0 MAUZUrate 4 LEW Movement iD the great campaign. SETTING UP THE STANDARD. bur watchword is:—“in the uame of our God wil we Set Up our Lanuers.”” And, first of all, what are the bauners? Weil, we read the song ol the Church i the oiden t —"He brought me into his banquet- ing hall and his banner over me was Love.”’ so it ig God has led us into this house, where He spreads the festival 01 grave, aud bere above us shuls float the ban. ner of divine Jove. Here wil we sit dowa unaer H shudow und His fruit shall be sweet to our taste, Lt shail be our joy to proclaim His love, and to taste and see that the Lurd is good. Bui this isthe banner for the tent; we also and chielly set up bauners for the ficla. up the banuer of Gospel and Truth, We spread forth tue Word of the Lord, the supreme power of conquest over men’s hearts aud for extending tne Re- deewer's kingiom. Says David, the warrio: hou hast given u banuer to them that fear Thee, that it may be displayed because ot the trucn.”? ‘The Lanner of the Gospel. it is inscribed with the Rane ot Immanuel, Itis ndorned with the image of the Crucitied, Here the Gospel ts to be proclaimed; ob, Liessed, inspired Word! Here the trumpet is to sound, proclaiming pardon to cach rebel sinner. This place will soon be filed with expectant and happy Worshippers, und we humbly beiteve tat, while we in fanhiuiness shall minister the words, attending shuil beat the records that hearts h b- mitted to the authority of the train and been con- quered by the Cross, Which is stil as over the wis- dom und the power of God to every one that believeth, The miniscer then glanced on at the doctrines to be preached aud maintamed in the new church, the di inguishing doctriaes, be said. of the Baptist tai a faith now received b; 1,800,000 of the best people of this laud, THE SIGNAL OF BATTLE. The setting up the banners is the signal or battle. Whorever the standards of Jehovah are displayed, and the sword of the spirit unsheathed, there 18 tie valley of decisiva. The dark legions of the pit aud the tlas- Urious armies of heaven draw near, Hot us idle spec. tutors, but us sympatuctic allies with one or the other parties to the contest.” Here are the demunds of God's jaw, and thé elaius of His Gospel, both dispiayed and brought to bear on man’s conscience, will and hear jon theother side the pride and worluiness, the undevef and rebeliion of the sons of men. There is no clash o1 arms, no roil of urtillery, but pofle the less i# there a stern and bitter struggle because itis so silent And ah! how momentous the issues of that vattic. Not the tate of empires, but the destiny of immortal spirits hang suspended on the success or Jatiure of var banners, Ln setting up our banners wo erect a standard of sucial moruls Which 1s Immutable, luminous aad divine, and we Nye wen to advance to that standard and range Uiemseives beneath its battalions of the virtuous, us champions of the Evernal Rigut. A gospel church is uke Gioraltar, Nowhere can the banners of God's truth ve unfurled bat they uphft with wem the whole life of « community, and become also « warning check to the lawiessners and secaiarity of the angodly, Its joy in salvation which fils us With the determination to set up hese stund- ards or bauners Wherever these ensigns moye for- ward they carry the peac them. The standard of the cross carries joy with i, cry which attacks the force of man's enemy and God's as salvation. THE FORTY HOURS’ DEVOTION, A most edifying spectacie was witnessed yesterday at the baif-past ten o'clock mass in the Chareh of St, Bonitace (German), Jersey City, of whieh Rev. Fathor Kraus is pastor, Toe religious exercises known a8 tne forty hours’ adoration were commenced by a proc #on, In whieh the children and the different societies parish took part A solema muss was cote. at by Father Kraus, and ali the male members of the congregation received communion. The biessed sacrament Was exposed 1u the taberpucle during the day and the altar was decorated with choice flowers, The church was visited by a crowd of piwus people during the day, The devotion will be continued to-day, ful victories of grace with | | of ‘the stage thaw by wu ‘Toe uplifted voice of its trumpets ts sarvation, the war | ST. PATRICK'S CHURCH, OF HART- FORD. IMPOSING DEDICATORY CEREMONIES—DISTIN- GUISHED PRELATZS IN ATTENDANCE—SER- MON BY BISHOP M'’QUAID, OF ROCHESTER, [BY TELEGRAPH 10 THE HERALD.) Hantrorp, Conn., Nov. 26, 1876. St. Patrick’s now and splendid church was dedicated to religious services to-day, the ceremonial being in all respects unsurpassed by any ever witnessed here, not excepting that of the consecration of Bishop Gal- berry, last spring. THR OFFICIATING CLERGTMEX. ‘The ceremony of the dedication was performed by Bishop Galberry, of the Hartford diocese, and the oifi- ciating clergymen in the grand mass were:—Celebrant, Archbishop Williams, of Boston; high priest, Prest- dent Gokeln, of Fordham College, N. Y.; masters of ceremonies, Reva. McCave and Cremens, of Hartford; deacon of honor, Rev. Luke Daily, of New Britain; deacon of mass, Fra Leo, of Winsted, with the usual subordinate offmals. In addition to the bishops be- fore named as present, there were in attendance from New York and victnity Fathers Adams and Keegan, of Brooklyn; Merrick and Edwards, ot New York, and Malone, of Williamsburg. THE ATTENDANCE was very large, being ncarly 3,000, and drawn not only from the Hartford parishes, but from New Britain, Manchester and intermediate poinis, special trains having been arranged tor. THE DEDICATORY CEREMONI:S began at half-past ten o'clock, and wore in the cus- tomary fcrm. Solemn high mass was then celebrated With imposing ceremonies. Beaut:tul and grand as is this mass at ail times, its effects on this occasion were heightened by the imposing gathering of high dignita- mies of the Church, clud in their richest vestments. The great church, softly illumined with light trom the windows of cathedral glass; the splendid altar, brilliant in its white and gold; the beantiful statuettes, lighted up by a myriad of gasjets, »ng the grand music by organ snd orchestra, with chorus of fifty voices, all combined te make up a scene of solemn grandeur not often witnessed. THR DEDICATION SERMON was preached by Bishop McQuaid, of kochester, who read the eighty-third psaln—“How lovely are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts,” &c., and introduced his discourse by reierring to tho light in which the Catholic Church is regarded by those outside its pale. They regard it as a great baman power, and in this is theirerrur, tor it comes of Divine power alone, is guided by Divine power and bas been preserved through ali ime by the race =f God, Macaulay, in ing Ranke's “History of the Popes,”” ' speak the papal power, und how wonderfully i. ‘has been preserved through centuries, It has seen empires rise and fall aud pass away and yet stanus firm as ever, and centuries bence, wien the New Zealander shall stand upon London Bridge aud specuiate over the ruins of the great city, papacy shall then be in existence. Tho Divine faith of the Catboiics was referred to, that faith that ts superior to reason, that allows nothing to pus it aside, some of the poorer aud less intellectual members of the Church may pot understand all its doctrines, yet they have pertect faith in them. This periect iuith Is the strony power of the Church, for it unites its people to Staud by it to tue last and protect their yalgee even with their lives, I'he,Church is what itis thfough this faith, and this faith ts Divine. Ip attributing the suc- cess of the Church to natural means, those who do not understand it, are, theretore, in error, and in thus arguing they goagainst all their knowledge ut the past; for nothing in the history of the world 1s to be com- pared with the history of the Catholic Cnurch, which bas stood while all nations of men have tallen to tho ground. The speaker dwett upon the omnipresence of God in the Church, exercising His Divine intucnce and watchful care over it and its people, and then, after relerring briefly to the nonor aud obedience due the bead of the Church as the representative of God on earth, and to the clerzy in their greut work of spread- ing the teachings of the Divine taith, be congratulated the people of the parish oa the good work they had uc- complished, The sermon, of which the dove 18 only a brief sketch, was un able effort, and occupied three- quarters of an huur in delivery. THE MUSIC was fine, its principal leature deing the rendition of Hayda’s imperial mass, which was given entire. Alter the ceremony, Which occupied tour hours, the vugiting clergy were entertainéd at the convent on Fariniugton avenue. Vesper services wi held this evening, at which Bishop O’Reilly, of Springfeld, preached a sermon of rare excellvuce. CONGRATULATIONS. Very Rev. James Hughes, of St Patrick’s, has been Lhe recipient of numerous congratulations from visiting clergy on the architectural beauty aad the splendid interior of bis editice, which is second to none in New England Although costing nearly $150,000, tho liberality of bis purtsnioners has been such that, with the insurapce money received on account of tho burned edifice which this replaces, only a compara. tively small part, a few thousand dollars, of the build. ing expenses remains to be met by future subscription, CHURCH AND STAGE. PROFESSOR BLACKIE DEFINES THE MISSION OF THE THEATRE AND ACCORDS AN HONORABLE PLACE TO DRAMATIC ART, {From the London Fra) In opening the Greek ciass in Edinburgh University on Tuesday Professor Biackie took oveasion to make the following remarks on the relations of the Church and the theatre: The special case of Aristophanes and the Greek comedy, with the revel of wanton license wineb char- acterized it, leads me to say a word or two generally on the couection betwixt morality and stage piays, or the Church and theatre—a theme on which, siuce He days ol the Puritaus dowuwaed, a ‘tain class of in this country "have been ever to invite pubic discassion, I will commence by stating a fact fast Saturday, from a convatenation of causes, which it concerns bo man to koow, I tound myself im the singular position Of paving been twico at the theatre inthe same day; and op reviewing my conduct at bight, according to the pious Pytuagorean precept, be- tore [ said my prayers, 1 1ound that { had done nothing ot which | had any cause to repent, but something rather on which 1 should look back wih thoughtal Satisfaction ail the days of my luo; and when { state that Lhe two plays which 1 witnessed on that day were “Hamiet” and “fhe Beils,’’ im both of which the principal parts were sustained by that singularly chaste, pure und finely feeling tragedian Mr. Irving, no person, I am couvinced, who ever witnessed his pertormances will wave the least diiliculty in comprehending the cause of my satistuction, Hat whether assisted by the chastely suggestive action of Mr. Irving or not, what 1 wish to call attention to at present is, that these two pieces are both of a bighly moral char- acter and a pro!ouud!y religious significanee, and they were listened to by large and crowded houses with & breathless attention and a devout sympathy that | have seldom geen surpassed im any congregation of Christians listening to Lue most eloquent discourse. It ig plain, thereiore, that the modern stage, of whose deterioration and degradativa we have heard so much, 18 still, on some occasions at lesst, and ju the hands of certaiq’ person: forming nobiy its proper fanction—exbibited so grandly in the ancicut Greek tragedy—as practically a pulpit from which the most profound moral truths are taughi, in @ manuer at once tue most natural, the most attractive and the most elluctive; and unless {¢ cup be shown that the eagerness with which the peor ple run ulter such representations as those L have inen- tioned 1s allogetwer excepuve, I realy do not see how clergy men OF avy Olver persons can be justified in con- demuing Wholesale, us tiey sometimes do, the present State aud condition of the uobiest torm of intellectual Tycreation e' nvented by man. HAMLET” AND “THE BRLLS,’? And, so far as my expericuce goes, | consider my- sell, 1n Justice to a body of men who do not ulways re- ceive, eituer frou the clergy or from the geueral pub- hie, such grateful acknowledgmeut as tueir services deserve—in justice to theatrical artists, I feel bouad to yive my evidence that there 1s not the slightest reason to velieve that the ucceptableness of “Hurulet” and “fhe Beis” to a (ueatrical audience, through the impassioned ltmpersonations of Mr, Irving, isan exceptioeal plenomenon, 1 am no great tueatre goer; but whenever I did happen—elsewhere or speciily In Loudon—to see the piece which had evjoyed the popular rau of the season, L did not find inal is Was w paruiculariy immoral piece, of an Mamorul pleoe at ali, but sometimes rather a h ghly moral and extremely evangelical piece, as tis very The B and auetuer calied ‘Leab,”’ of Wuieb the dramatic motive hes in ihe eharacteristi« cally Kopel Virtue of Lhe Jorgiveness Of injuries, But bot only Ob ibese vecasions, but through my whole life, as Wu Oecasiona! Wituesser Of theatrical repre tations, [cup stite With the most suiewn assurance t 1 bave 1¥ wet Wh even wwmoral m- wuations in popular pitys, much less with essentially Immoral plots, Un the contrary, | have generally found (ho tvor of ihe stage occupied either by inuocent and wmusing pictures of popular manuers, such as Wii he pages OF Thackeray aud that vilusopher Mr. Paueu (the true Briush Aristo- theric stories of butan sullering, gen eraity springing out vi buman folly or sin, the con- templatron of Whielk woud scarcely bul to buve a good Moral eifect On every scumd-bearted spectator, And L wish to say bere, wom this elit puoiicly, what 1 have often said pr: to Gistiuguinlod members of the clerical prote: that have much viteuer 10lt the gracious tear-drops of Duman sympathy aud devout puy drawn from my eves by the Vivid impersonations: e most fervid appeals of elo quence ever delivered frum a scottisa palpi, So tar, terelore, as my experieuce goes—and L bave ho rear son to linagive that lam singulur—that class raf sons, whether clergy of laymen, who are fond to indulge iv deciamations against the mudern stage, are very lar from being altogether in the rieht; rather, according to my fecling, #0 turin the wrong that, if li were to use the Janguage which flows with such famil- Jar Genuucition irom their ips, | should consider my- Bell guilty Of a great siunder against the public and a gross uibel against a most respectable ciues of my fel- Jow etuzens, tor which, a8 a Ubrisiian and a gentle- man, 1 should consider myseit bound to make an am- ple apology. ‘TH® TESTIMONY OF RXPRKIESCE Put there are not » few awou clergy with more sense and gentiemunty feel ‘han those of whom 1 nave been speaking, Who content themselves with saying that ip general there 1s nothing perticu- larly ad oF immoral ia stage piaye—nay, they are generally good In their tendency, at least innocent, corruption nati gathers; and they solemnly aavise young men (and old men, too, I suppose) never to en-| ter piace where it is impossible to avoid the contagion of bad company. Now. in reference t6 thi charge, also, 1 wish to give testimony most em- phatically thut neither in Kdinburgh, nor in London, ‘nor in Berlia, nor in Weimar, por in Vienua, nor i Rome, nor in Naples—in ail which places, and a score of others, I have at different periods of my life wit- bad com; in pts iter aioe y In any either when Ly witbin tha sheaug ec ohen enter out of i, 1 say avy peculiar because a man who moves in tl¢ world must meot with bad company, in general sense, everywhere. I bave met with bad company and what 1 cail low Com pone 1s, the com: pany of persons with low sordid ideas and senti- ments that stunk in my nostrils—et the tables some- times ba rae proud citizens making un ambitiout display unintellecteal luxuries and belly daiuties, or even on tho more elevated platiorm of big dinners given by tbe would-be gentilities and the gen- teel vulgarities of the West End. 1 have also been more than once, ubhappily, side by side with the most Jow and coarse and ly companions in the saloon of the Jona steamboat during the week of the Glasgow fair, I have not seldom Ukewise had to resist the seductive solicitations of bad company in female guise, some thirty years avo, when my hair was Dot white, returning trom a dinner party or other social meeting, and walking quiétly along the street im search of my own respectable domicil hoor considerably before midnight; bat 1 ne’ mect with bad company in any sense wher either in the pit rows of the boxes of any theatr¢ 19 Europe. i THE CHURCH MUST CHANGE. “My opinion, thereiore, 18 that if persons witnessing a play [ali in with bad company who lead them to ther Tuin the theatre 1s not to blime for this, but theirown upregenerate nature and their want of mauly sell. control—a de:ect of character which makes them the ready prey, wherever they go, of all sorts of carnal seducuons, whether in the theatre or out of it, or even within tho sacred fuur walls of the church 1 fact of ‘the matter 1s, gentiemen, that uot ouly with regard to the theatre, but with regard | to the matter of public amusements gen- rally, the clergy of this country bave put them~ selves in @ talse position, and they must wheel right avout if they mean to do auy good, The idea uf | stamping Out amugements—and especially such ao ine tellectual and morally noble amusement as the thea- tre—is ridiculous, If we are to act on the principia that because certain evils or certain temptations may 1u certain circumstances hang by the skirts of certain amusements, we ure therefore he mag to interdict, such awusements, I cannot sce Where we are to stop, unless by stamping out ull enjoyment of whatsoever description from the world. Tho clergy, therefore, ought to understund, if they re not pre- pared to drift back into the mouldiness and the stupidity of monkisi asceticism, that it their duty as ministers of a reasonable service to con- secrate all natural, healthy entertainments, and not to frown on them or mudly to attempt their exurpation. Aad I say now, in ail seriousness, lot tue clergy, as in- dividuals and collectively 48 a Church, come lorward and publicly patronize all inuocent amusemenis, cs- pecially theatres. Unless the God of Nature und the God of the Bible be two different deities—which, I think, Bishop Butler proved triumphantly they a not—then the drama ig fundamentally trom God ag much us the sermon, and the stage 13 ® divine institu. tion no less than the pulpit, EITHER ONE OR THE OTHER. “If wo, the Christian churches are bound either to get up a separate sacred drama for themselves, alter the mauner of some well known pieces of Metustasio, acted at Vienna during the Passion Week, or, what think in every view preferable, to break dowa boldly at once that middie wall of partition that has been artiticially raised in tuis country between the pulpit d the stage, and to enter generously into an agreement with those most respectable per- sons who preside over dramatic catertainments in thig city that tuey will give their. moral and personal sup- port to all stage representations which eitber provide innocent amusement or furnish salutary moral stimu- Jant to the peopie, Such sensible, manly and generous conduct would at once secure to them, und to the large section of tue puviic who tollow them, such au influ. ence with stage managersand actors as would intallib!; extrade irom the thease any 1nproper elemenis wit! which it may accidentally have become associated, Butif they do not adopt either of these measures for the consecration of dramatic performances, and con- tinue tu Indulge in those recurrent skits of narrow and unroasonabie sacerdotal slang which ever aad anon disport theinseives in our Presbyterian Church Courts, myselt and a large pumber vo! reasonable per- sons who read our Holes, in wre well inolined to the Scottish churches, witl take ine liberty of setting down Dot ata very bigh ligure eiihez the social wisdom, the cultivated juteliigeuce, or the morai courage of thd local elergy SHAMELESS CRUELTY. A SEVEN-YEAB-OLD GIRL DRIVEN FROM HOM , AND HEB LIMBS FROZEN. {From the Albany Evening Journal, Nov. 25.) One of the most shocking cases of cruelty it has ever failen to the lot of a newspaper to record was broaght to the noticeaf Chief Maloy this afternoon, ‘The circumstances thereof, as faras have yet been learned, are as tollows:—Residing on the road leading from West Albany to the Shaker road, and about/hals” way between these points, is a family named Meisner, consisting of a man, his wife anda little girl seven years of ago, The neighbors in the vicinity have noticed that the child was not well treated by its pa rents, and, therefore, when nothing was seen of th¢ littlo girl all day yesterday and Thursday, suspicions that something wrong had taken place entered theit minds, This morning a delegation of the ighbors waited upon the parents and inquired after the ¢btid, Receiving but swall satisfaction trom the surly head of tne family the inquirers became more and more convinced that something was wrong und forthwith instituted a search in the vicinity of the premises, About Mfty or sixty tect from tue house there ts a swamp, abounding in undere growth and rank vegetation, and on the searcher@ penetrating thig they louud the poor, little, thinlys clad creature cuddleu up bebind some bushes, nearly dead from exhaustion and exposure. Sho was car@ fully taken up and cunveyed to the house of a neigh bor, when Dr. Benjamin was summoned, He exe amined the child and jouud both ber legs and arma frozeu. The Doctor at ouce ordered ber removal to the Homeopathic Hospitcl, on North Pearl street, and she was conveyed thither, 1 was believed that the limbs of the child would have to be amputated to save her life. it appears that the parents on Wedacsday afternoon wok exceptions at some trifling uct the child bad done and drove her trom the house, She wandered into the swamp and lay down tv dio rather than returo. The uonataral couple, it seems, bowwithstanding the child’s projonged absence, made ‘no effort bo ascertain wha: bad become ot her, Mean. time the poor innocent, in the gleam oi day and the gloom of uight, prostrated by the cold, awaited the ap. proach of death, while her beurtless parents, scarct tify feet away, went about their usual vocations un caring ana unheeding what had befallen ber. Dr. Benjamin, on being ma equatuted with thi Maul interested himsel( in the mutter, and calling on Chi Maloy tntormed utm of the case, with a view to secur ing the punishment of the inhuman parents. Spectal Ottloer irayton will undoubtedly prosecute them undet the new law, and Cuptuin Hagadorn has been in- structed by the Ch: to make a tull inguiry into the facts. The case lies in the town of Watervitet, ig THE SACRAMENTO DISASTER. PARTICULARS OF THE OPERA HOUSE TRAGEDI—= LIST OF THE KILLED AND WOUNDED, {From the San Francisco Call.) Sacramento, Nov. 18, 1876, A little afier eight o’clock to-night Moore’s Opera House, on Second street, between K and L, in this city, was the scone of a most frightful accident, resalting in the death and injury of nearly 100 persons, The occas sion was the opening night, the place having been opened for the first time, Tne Peake Family ai vaudeville troupe occupied the boarda, the place having Deen fitted up for thom, Mrs. Peake is proprietress. The piace has been known as the Olympic Hall, and Was at one time used ag a State armory, 1t is over the large livery stable of J. W. Wilson, which was cou- verted into a theatre by seating the floor with chaira and erecting a bullway, and betwoen the ceiling and the floor a dress circle aud box Tho hall is 40 by 85 feet inside the walls,and the floor was sell-supporting, being withoot columns or pillars. When in use as the State armory it supported 100 tons, and was considered sale, The dress circle and boxes were erected upos the floor. The place would seut 1,200 peopie, an im menso crowd tilled the hall while tbe performance wat in progress, when simultaneously tho entire floor fell, carrying down the stage, dress circlo and boxes. Tue walls stooad unharmed, and the floor back ot the hati being held up, pitched the audience to- ward the stnge. Ali liguts were immediately extiu- guished, leaving the struggling, shrieking mass in darkness, ‘The news spread, creating the utmost con- sternution in the city, heightened by the anxiety of Iriends au vo the walety of persous supposed to be ta the tulien bailding. Tho tire alarm sounded, and the Fire Department, at ofive on the ground, took cbarge jm counection with the polico of the wreck. Hun dreds, unhurt, Crawied trom tue fallen timbers, aod at once the removal of the aébris commenced, By this tume many tonsand people had assembied anxious for joformation as to their triends, TUR DEAD AND WOUNDED, The following 18 a list of the killed and woundod:— Arthur Wilson, son of J. W. Wilson, badly hurt; Mrs, Wilson, actress, serious bruises on the legs; Luiu Waisou, one leg injured; Ed- die Peak, bruised, not seriousiy; Smith, leader of or- chestra, injured. Alter the accident an unknowa was badly injured, but was upabie to give bis name; Oscar Gilman, badly cut on the head and logs; “J, Joseph, Eighth sweet, between K and Ly streets, badly hurt aboat the legs; R. Beltman, right ankle broked; Gibson. bruised; Ea. Harber, compust- toe of tue Record: Union, vadly burt, but will recover; O, H. Jackson, burt by pressure about the bips; Green, genetauily braised; O. N. Blanchard, atthe Western Hotel, badly burt; G. O. Humphrey, iuternaliy and seriously injarod; Charles Barnes, cub avout the head; a boy named Scninaier, cur about the head and shoutter; G. Frey, arm broken; Wilhe and George Myers, bruised; B. W. Cage, shoulder blade fOONTINUED ON NINTH PAGEI