But the sound of the church-going bellThese valleys and rocks never heard;Ne'er sigh'd at the sound of a knell,Or smiled when a Sabbath appear'd.
|
We have men sold to build churches, women sold to support the gospel, and babes sold to purchase Bibles for the poor heathen! all for the glory of God and the good of souls! The slave auctioneer's bell and the church-going bell chime in with each other, and the bitter cries of the heart-broken slave are drowned in the religious shouts of his pious master. Revivals of religion and revivals in the slave-trade go hand in hand.
frederick douglassI hope you will be benefitted by your churchgoing. Where the habit does not Christianize, it generally civilizes. That is reason enough for supporting churches, if there were no higher.
rutherford b. hayesThe church-going bell.