Phyllis of Philistia by Frank Frankfort Moore
page 53 of 326 (16%)
page 53 of 326 (16%)
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One of the chaplains of the bishop occupied a seat in the aisle; according to the facetious newspaper he held a watching brief. The rector was, of course, oblivious of his brilliant entourage. He could not even tell if Phyllis or her father were present. (As a matter of fact both were in their accustomed seats in their own pew.) He, as usual, took but a small part in the ritual--as Lord Earlscourt once remarked, George Holland wasn't such a fool as to keep a dog and do the barking himself. (It has already been stated that he had a couple of excellent curates.) But the sermon was preached by himself, as indeed it usually was after the morning service. It was the most brilliant of all his efforts. He took as his text the words, "All Scripture is given by inspiration and is profitable," and he had no difficulty in showing how vast was the profit to be derived from a consideration of every portion of the sacred volume, it appeared to him, than the account given of the early history of the Hebrew race. That account appealed as an object lesson to all nations on the face of the earth. It allowed every people to see the course which the children of Israel had pursued at various periods of their existence and to profit by such observation. The Hebrews were a terrible example to all the world. If they were slaves when in the land of Egypt, that was their own fault. Milton had magnificently expressed the origin of slavery: "He that hath light within his own clear breast May walk i' the noontide and enjoy bright day, But he that hides dark deeds and foul thoughts. . . . Himself is his own dungeon." The bondage of Egypt was, he believed, self-imposed. There is no account |
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