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AN ADDRESS
TO
ALL
EARNEST CHRISTIANS.
BY
T. LUMISDEN STRANGE,
LATE JUDGE OF THE HIGH COURT OF MADRAS.
AUTHOR OF “THE BIBLE, IS IT 4 THE WORD OF GOD, * ” “THE SPEAKER’S
COMMENTARY. REVISED,” “ A CRITICAL CATECHISM,” ETC.
PUBLISHED BY THOMAS SCOTT,
NO. 11, THE TERRACE, FARQUHAR ROAD,
UPPER NORWOOD, LONDON, S.E.
�AN ADDRESS
TO ALL
EARNEST CHRISTIANS.
The Christian Evidence Society maintain their posi
tion, such as it is, in seeming composure. They have
a world of their own, and abstract themselves from
what is outside their circle. They are at sea, aware
of the storm blowing around them, but prefer the
shelter of their cabins to facing the troublesome
elements. They have nailed their colours to the
masthead ; the old vessel tumbles about sadly, and
creaks in all its timbers; but it still floats, and they
trust will continue to do so. They wish not to
alarm the crew with the revelation of what is assailing
them. They keep them, therefore, battened down
under the hatches. Mr Scott and his writers habit
ually knock at their doors, but they are not to be
disturbed. His personal appeal to them, made two
years ago, has met with no attention. Mine, of April
last, remains similarly unnoticed. We appear to have
been addressing “watchmen,” such as those of old,
who are “ all dumb dogs,” and “cannot bark
and
are allowed to roam about, unscathed, like the relent
less Philistines, when the chosen people, in the time
of their first king, hid themselves in holes, conscious
�3
that they had not a weapon among them wherewith
to face the enemy.
The Christian Evidence Society are not the only
persons guilty of evading their opponents. There are
multitudes bound up in the same cause, provided also
with a host of professional standard bearers. Many
of these are continually appealed to, and in vain.
It ’ is sad, but true, that those professing to have
divine truth on their side hesitate to have it examined
by the light of the present day. With indifference
we cannot charge them. Many of them abound in
zeal, doubtless; but it is a zeal so tempered with
caution, as to be practically, on such occasions as I
speak of, inoperative. We doubt not that they would
match themselves with us were they reasonably con
fident of the results. It is just, we must conclude,
the apprehension that the issue might be otherwise
than favourable that deters them from incurring the
venture. This is neither manly nor honest. Nor
can it avert the threatening danger. In the confid
ence of the power of insubvertible truth, we advance
openly and boldly, fearing no adversaries. The day
is our own, but as yet only in the distance. We
earnestly desire to hasten the march of that enlighten
ment which has visited ourselves. We have a duty
to perform towards those still shrouded in darkness.
We should be untrue to them, as well as to ourselves,
were we to be guilty of retaining in silence the sense
we have of the prevailing error. We know its
potency, and how it enslaves the understanding and
debases the thoughts and sentiments. We know of
the miserable dominion of fear it establishes, and of
the forbidding nature of the representation it makes
to mankind at large of the author of their beings. To
be silent would be to leave the erroi' to free currency.
�4
We should be maintaining a forced indifference to its
prevalence such as we do not feel. We therefore
speak out with what power of expression we can
command. We are called destructors, and. should be
so had we no better thing to offer than the scheme
we denounce.
I have personally had considerable experience of
both elements. I lived for years upon the food
presented by the religious system I have turned from.
I thought its records came from the source of all
truth, had been uttered by instruments divinely
inspired, and contained all that was to govern me in
this life, and fit me for the life that has to come. I
fervently and undoubtingly believed, and strove to
conform myself in all respects to what was thus put
before me. And when facts and considerations, too
plain to be misunderstood, presented themselves to
disturb my faith in the sources of my dependence, I
struggled for years before the strands were severed
which bound me to my past convictions. Now I am
willing to be tested in every way by those remaining
in the position I have left, and for whom I have in
truth the deepest sympathies. If any one of them
will open a correspondence with me, he has my per
mission to probe my present faith to the utmost. I
should be glad, at the same time, if not too painful to
his feelings, to be allowed to make some searching
inquiries connected with the foundations of his frith.
Either side should be at liberty at the close of the
correspondence to publish the results.
T. L. STRANGE.
. Great Malvern,
September 1873.
�
Dublin Core
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Title
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Victorian Blogging
Description
An account of the resource
A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
Creator
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
Date
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2018
Publisher
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
Text
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Pamphlet
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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An address to all earnest Christians
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Strange, Thomas Lumisden
Description
An account of the resource
Place of publication: London
Collation: 4 p. ; 18 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Thomas Scott
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1873
Identifier
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CT97
Subject
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Christianity
Rights
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<a href="http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/"><img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /></a><span> </span><br /><span>This work (An address to all earnest Christians), identified by </span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk"><span>Humanist Library and Archives</span></a><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
Format
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application/pdf
Type
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Text
Language
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English
Christianity-Controversial Literature
Christians
Conway Tracts