Zion’s Landmark: Wilson, N. C.
Elkhorn, Folk County, Oregon,
May 3rd, 1876.
FAder Gold:—
I am still pleased with the Land
mark. In the number of April 1st,
1876, I see a communication written
by brother W. T. Godard, of Georgia,
in which he alludes to a communica
tion written by_me. When I saw it
I hunted up the paper to see what I
had written, to see if I had cast any
reflection on our preachers. I find
that I spoke of some that had got too
smart. Now, brethren, I don’t wish
to be understood to mean that our
preachers are a class of men that are
ail getting wise above what is writ
ten bttt we find that the devil was
permitted,, even in the days of the
apostles, to transform his ministers
into the ministers of light, and work
them into the Church. And the
apostle tells us,, that they shall wax
worse j then we may look for them.
Again, we know that our preachers
are men of like passions with us, sub
ject to the same temptations. So, I
agree with brother Godard, that we
should watch them, but not with a
jealous eye, trying to get something
to accuse them of, but forthei rgood
and the good of their cause, *But, in
doing this, we should not foi’get that
we too are fallible creatures, and need
watching.. If we would all watch
ourselves,,and each one keep himself,
at all times, in his proper place, we
would have but little need of being
watched by, others. But this is the
great trouble—at least with me. I
find self the worst enemy that I
have to encounter with, and it often
af>pears much harder for me to un
derstand myself than to understand
others. I see so much evil in myself,
that I often turn to some brother or
sister to see if they have \the same
evil nature to contend with that I
have; then, with all my search,! find
them ahvays in the right place. I
am often made to exclaim. Can one
that is a Christian have .“uch 'a heart
as mine? I often find myself in
clined to see a fault in others and
overlook my own. I used to think
that if I lived to be old it would be
different with me; but I am now
nearly sixty-nine, and find myself
the same sin-defiled creature that I
have always been. But why fill your
fellow creatures’ mind with your sad
tale of eiTor?
I had a thought of offering a few
thoughts in regard to the true
Church, and the spirit of error that
has from time to time crept into it.
We find ever since the creation
of man, that the enemy has always
been disposed to meddle with God’s
creatures, striving to lead them con
trary to the command of Go! the
Creator ; and lies have been his strong
hold—this being his chief design. It
appears, that when the Gotl ot heav
en set up his kingdom on the earth,
that he was not long in getting his
army in force against that kingdom ;
and, knowing that he can succeed
much better he gets some of his
officers into the fort, and he himself
into an angel of light. No marvel
then if his ministers be transformed
iiito the ministers of light. So he
transformed his ministers and got
them into the kingdom or Church of
■Christ—in the days of the apostles ;
but Ills ministers are like himself,
they always preach a little more
than the truth, or else stop short of
the whole truth.
In the case under consideration,
they seemed to preach more than the
truth : they preached Christ and his
righteousness, and then added, “Ye
must be circumcised, and keep the
law.” Now, from allthatl can gatlicr,
from both scripture and Churcli his
tory, these w'ere the builders of the
Catholic Church. But, it is not
clearly set forth in either, whether
they all stood connected till in the
third century—in the days of Nova-
tian. It appears, from history, that
a separation took place then, between
Novatian and Cornelius: then, all that
stood firm in the doctrine of Christ
and his apostles, stood with Novatian;
and tho.se that were inclined to fol
low the inventions of men followed
Cornelius. These being the strong
party, they assumed the name Catho
lic, as the universal Church, and by
way of derision, gave the others the
name of Novationists, because he
was their principal leader. Cornelius
and his party were the Catholic church
in her childhood. It was about this
time that infant baptism was institu
ted, and sprinkling for baptism. But,
to undertake to trace the two parties
to the present, would take a large
volume; so wc pass to the year 606,
when she had grown to \vomanhood.
She is now a very fair and intelligent
virgin—in the eyes of the world.—
She is then married to the Pope of
Rome; and when a woman marries
she takes the name of her husband.
So sbe-no^vi talifis^jJ^. Jiame ot the
Roman Catholic Cliui
strong arm of the Pope enables her
to reign triumphantly over all these
nations, tongues and people, wherep^n
.she sat when John the apostle saw
her.
Bat the things of which we wish
to speak are after the reformation took
place in the sixteenth century. We
understand that the first war that the
beast waged against the Church or
kingdom of Christ, or the witness of
Jesus, was to last one thousand two
hundred and three score days—which
we understand to be twelve hundred
and sixty years. This bi’ings us to
the latter part of the thirteenth cen
tury. If we turn our eyes to histo
ry we find that about this time the
governments
and
kingdoms over
which the Empire of Rome reigned
began to be restless and rebellious,
and the priests and clergy began to
be tired of the supreme power of the
Pope. Now the mother is growing
old and begins to be refused ; and
the prince of darkness begins to see
that his war of extermination is a
failure, that he has failed by prisons,
fire and sword to exterminate the
kingdom of Christ. Now sometliing
moie must be done: all the wits of
the power of darkness are set to work
to get up some new plan ; and, as he
did first succeed with man by seduc
tion, it seems that he now concludes
to work on that plan again, and as
the mother is old, and her beauty and
coraelineso are tading away, some
of her daughters must be sent oul ;
and they must be dressed as near like
the bride of Christ as the nature of
the case will admit.
Here is a job that required all the
skill of himself and all his satellit&s,
it seems, for a period of more than
two centuries. So in the sixteenth
century these two daughters were
sent out. They are very fair and ac
commodating; but daughtei’s are apt
to favor the mother, and in these
there are several features of the moth
er, that to a close observer, are still
visible in the daughters, of
which we will name two or three: the
mother said, that inasmuch as we have
received baptism in lieu of circumcis
ion, and under the old covenant they
circumcised their cliildren, so, un
der the new, we should baptize ours ;
and as immersion is indecent and in
convenient, and as the Pope was Pe
ter’s successor, he had a right to
change the ordinances to suit the con
venience of the people. So, he in
stituted sprinkling for baptism. But
they are extremely accommodating :
—they say to the people : Come to us,
if you wish to be immersed we will
meet you there, or if you wish a more
convenient and decent mode we will
sprinkle a little ^yater on your head ;
or if you wish it we will pour water
on you; and we are not like those
old, bigoted,hide-bound Puritans who
think themselves too good to eat and
drink with others, hut we will letyou
eat and drink with all that claim the
name of Christ. Now persecution
liad frightened all the transformed
ministers out of the Church of Christ.
But now persecution begins to move
away, and milder treatment is the
order of the day—to lead the Church
into error is the motto. Now he he-
gjns to work in Ids transformed min-
gain, they begin to ]ioint to
T’.(?3U aanghters of the old mother;
Iiow they flourish and prosper ; they
Iwirn educated men ; amd if we don’t
have educated men we cannot con
tend with educated men, and we shall
liave no influence, and all men will
go to them, and we will die out, and
the truth will be discarded. Now,
as we are zealous for truth, let us
spare no pains—eitlier in money or
talent—to vindicate the truth. Wc
believe tliat they are deceiving the
people, and they have smart men who
are able to make their system look
beautiful. And our ignorant minis
ters are not able to contend with
them ; and we can’t get smart men
unless we pay them. We are taught
in the word that those wlio preach
the gospel shall live of the gospel.
In the seventeenth century they
began to hire their ministers in Eng
land. This began to get up strife
and confusion which led to splits and
divisions; but, like the Jews in the
land of Canaan, they were not sat
isfied with worshipping their gods,
but they must marry their daughters.
Then they must have a king that
they might be like the nations around
them. God, after bearing long with
them, and sending prophets and
righteous men, teaching them the
good and the right way—sent a
mighty nation against them, and they
were carried captives to Babylon ; and
they were left in almost a lifeless
condition ; tlieir temple in ruins, and
the daily sacrifice taken away. Now,
these are not satisfied with the hire
ling clergy, but they must receive
tliem on their baptism. Now they
are beginning tacoraraune with them ;
but, like it was with the Jews, there
are a few of the poor of the people left
who have not gone into Babylon.—
But, like the Jews at Jerusilem, it
looks like they are so few and feeble,
that they are almost as unable to
contend with the error of the day as
the few Jews wlio were left at Jeru
salem were to contend with the ene
mies of Babylon ; and the enemy is
always prowling about tlie camj),
watching for an opportunity to make
an .inroail among ns. When we go to
look at the missteps of a brother,
he is always ready to hold his tele
scope to our eye in a way to multiply
a molehill to a mountain. Then he
is apt to tell us that it is riglit to ex
amine ourselves to see if we have
not been guilty of something; but
then lie is sure to turn the. tele.scope
to reduce a mountain to a molehill.
These are some of the temptations
that wc have to contend with ; but,
dear brethren, when we are tempted
by money to look at strifes, failures
or imperfections of our brethren, we
are not in a proper frame of mind,
we are not in the enjoyment of the
spirit of love and Christian fellow-
sliip, but arc under the influence of a
jealous spirit that would rather like
to find something to accuse them of.
Brethren, you may think this is too
bad a spirit to ever temp't the Chris
tian, but if you liave eseuped such
temptations as these yon are happier
than I ; but when we are under the
influence of the spirit of love to our
brother, and faith, hope, and charity
are in lively exercise, then we watch
0 ver our brother for good and not for
evil. Tins frame of mind will al
ways ward oft' the tele.scope of the
enemy.
B^t, brethren, though we we^
our great Redeemer is strong, and the
burden is on our Captain’s shoulder,
and none who on his name relv shall
be reduced to subjection.
But lest I get my sketch too long
1 will stop.
I don’t wish to he understood as
taking any exceptions to brother God
ard’s communication. So I wiii
close by subscribing myself your
most unworthy brother, if a brother
at all, in bonds of Christian love,
Wii.LiAM Butler.,
Eullcge Station, Morgan Comity, Ga-,
June 4th, 1876.
Elder P: D. Gold,—Dear Brother ir-
Christ:—
With your permi.ssion, I will at
tempt to drop you a few lines, that
you can, if you see proper, insert
them in your valuable paper—Zion’s-
Landmark :, if not, please cast it
aside, and all will be right with me.
There are times with me that I
would like to give an expression of
my feelings in writing to the saints.
I hope I feel so impressed now. I
have suffered those feelings often. I
have alsadone tlie same in not at
tempting to speak in the name of my
Lord and Master. A sense of my
own unwortliiness often hinders me
from doing what I fed to be a duty.
There seems to- me to, be a beauty
and sweetness in the blessed word of
God, that I cannot find language • to
express; but, when I hear the gospel
preached, there is a response, or an
amen within, that does grasp the
same, which often gives me some sat-