By the Editor
National Repentance
ON every hand we see evidences of the demoralizing effects of sin in our midst. Pride and arrogance seem to reign supreme. And yet the nation ought to be humbled in the dust in penitence and humiliation before God, in order that Almighty power might come to the help of a people sorely stricken and tried, on account of sin.
The whole Christian world laments that there has never, since the War began, been a definite call to humiliation before God: The rulers speak of the righteousness of the War— of the sins of the peoples at war with Great Britain. Some even go so far as to say tint God must bless England because her cause is just. Thus is the sepulcher whitened, that contains, the bones of, a dead faith in God and the Son of God, and all that vital Christianity stands for.
Admiral Beatty; the Commander of the fleet says:—
“England still remains to be taken out of the stupor self-satisfaction and complacency in which her flourishing condition has Steeped her; and until she can be stirred out of this condition, until a Religions Revival takes place at home, just so long will this War continue. When she can look on the future with humbler eyes and a prayer on her lips, then we can begin to count the days towards the end.”
It is the duty now of every Christian man and woman to do what those in power have not done—humiliate themselves before the God of all the earth, and pray for a nation that will not repent, until it does repent.
Abraham Lincoln’s proclamation, dated March 30th 1863, called on the great American nation to humble itself before the offended power of God, to confess its national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness. These are the words of his proclamation referring to this:
“I do by this my proclamation, designate and set apart Thursday, the 30th day of April, 1863, as a day of national humiliation, fasting and prayer. And I do hereby request all the people to abstain on that day from their ordinary secular pursuits, and to unite at their several places of public worship, and their respective homes in keeping the day holy to the Lord and devoted to the humble discharge of the religious duties proper to that solemn occasion.”
May God grant that before we come to the end of April a week-day may be set aside in England for national humiliation, fasting and prayer.
A Christian writes me: “I firmly believe that if we had set apart a week-day for intercession and humiliation for national sins’ the War might have, been over, two years ago; but we do not like the word humiliation, we, are afraid of what Germany will think!”
We are told to fear God and not Germany “The fear of man bringeth a snare,” but “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”
This month finds us with post-cards ready for the Italian soldiers. We are sure they will be as eager for our Testaments as the English and the French soldiers; have been, and are still. Will any worker among the Italian soldiers please write to us for Italian post-cards which they can distribute to the soldiers? We are deeply anxious to reap a rich harvest for God among the soldiers this great nation.