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IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. I.
IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. I.
BOSTON: HORACE B. FULLER, ( Successor to Walker, Fuller, and Company ,) 245, WASHINGTON STREET. 1867. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by THEODORE PARKER, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. TO FRANCIS JACKSON, THE FOE 'GAINST EVERY FORM OF WRONG, THE FRIEND OF JUSTICE, WHOSE WIDE HUMANITY CONTENDS FOR WOMAN'S NATURAL AND UNALIENABLE RIGHT; AGAINST HIS NATION'S CRUELTY PROTECTS THE SLAVE; IN THE CRIMINAL BEHOLDS A BROTHER TO BE REF
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PREFACE.
PREFACE.
I have collected in these volumes several Speeches, Addresses and occasional Sermons, which I have delivered at various times during the last seven years. Most of them were prepared for some special emergency: only two papers, that on "The Relation of Jesus to his Age and the Ages," and that on "Immortal Life," were written without reference to some such emergency. All of them have been printed before, excepting the sermon "Of General Taylor," and the address on "The American Scholar;" some have
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THE RELATION OF JESUS TO HIS AGE AND THE AGES.—A SERMON PREACHED AT THE THURSDAY LECTURE, IN BOSTON, DECEMBER 26, 1844.
THE RELATION OF JESUS TO HIS AGE AND THE AGES.—A SERMON PREACHED AT THE THURSDAY LECTURE, IN BOSTON, DECEMBER 26, 1844.
In all the world there is nothing so remarkable as a great man; nothing so rare; nothing which so well repays study. Human nature is loyal at its heart, and is, always and everywhere, looking for this its true earthly sovereign. We sometimes say that our institutions, here in America, do not require great men; that we get along better without than with such. But let a real, great man light on our quarter of the planet; let us understand him, and straightway these democratic hearts of ours burn w
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THE TRUE IDEA OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH.—A DISCOURSE AT THE INSTALLATION OF THEODORE PARKER AS MINISTER OF THE TWENTY-EIGHTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH IN BOSTON, JANUARY 4, 1846.
THE TRUE IDEA OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH.—A DISCOURSE AT THE INSTALLATION OF THEODORE PARKER AS MINISTER OF THE TWENTY-EIGHTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH IN BOSTON, JANUARY 4, 1846.
For nearly a year we have assembled within these walls from week to week,—I think not idly; I know you have not come for any trivial end. You have recently made a formal organization of yourselves for religious action. To-day, at your request, I enter regularly on a ministry in the midst of you. What are we doing; what do we design to do? We are here to establish a Christian church; and a Christian church, as I understand it, is a body of men and women united together in a common desire of relig
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A SERMON OF WAR, PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 1846.
A SERMON OF WAR, PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JUNE 7, 1846.
I ask your attention to a Sermon of War. I have waited some time before treating this subject at length, till the present hostilities should assume a definite form, and the designs of the Government become more apparent. I wished to be able to speak coolly and with knowledge of the facts, that we might understand the comparative merits of the present war. Besides, I have waited for others, in the churches, of more experience to speak, before I ventured to offer my counsel; but I have thus far wa
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SPEECH DELIVERED AT THE ANTI-WAR MEETING IN FANEUIL HALL, FEBRUARY 4, 1847.
SPEECH DELIVERED AT THE ANTI-WAR MEETING IN FANEUIL HALL, FEBRUARY 4, 1847.
Mr. Chairman,—We have come here to consult for the honor of our country. The honor and dignity of the United States are in danger. I love my country; I love her honor. It is dear to me almost as my own. I have seen stormy meetings in Faneuil Hall before now, and am not easily disturbed by a popular tumult. But never before did I see a body of armed soldiers attempting to overawe the majesty of the people, when met to deliberate on the people's affairs. Yet the meetings of the people of Boston ha
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A SERMON OF THE MEXICAN WAR.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JUNE 25, 1848.
A SERMON OF THE MEXICAN WAR.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JUNE 25, 1848.
Soon after the commencement of the war against Mexico, I said something respecting it in this place. But while I was printing the sermon, I was advised to hasten the compositors in their work, or the war would be over before the sermon was out. The advice was like a good deal of the counsel that is given to a man who thinks for himself, and honestly speaks what he unavoidably thinks. It is now more than two years since the war began; I have hoped to live long enough to see it ended, and hoped to
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A SERMON OF THE PERISHING CLASSES IN BOSTON.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 1846.
A SERMON OF THE PERISHING CLASSES IN BOSTON.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 1846.
There are two classes of men who are weak and little: one is little by nature, consisting of such as are born with feeble powers, not strongly capable of self-help; the other is little by position, comprising men that are permanently poor and ignorant. When Jesus said, It is not God's will that one of these little ones should perish, I take it he included both these classes—men little by nature, and men little by position. Furthermore, I take it he said what is true, that it is not God's will on
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A SERMON OF MERCHANTS.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1846.
A SERMON OF MERCHANTS.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1846.
I ask your attention to a Sermon of Merchants, their Position, Temptations, Opportunities, Influence and Duty. For the present purpose, men may be distributed into four classes. I. Men who create new material for human use, either by digging it out of mines and quarries, fishing it out of the sea, or raising it out of the land. These are direct producers. II. Men who apply their head and hands to this material and transform it into other shapes, fitting it for human use; men that make grain into
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A SERMON OF THE DANGEROUS CLASSES IN SOCIETY.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 31, 1847.
A SERMON OF THE DANGEROUS CLASSES IN SOCIETY.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 31, 1847.
We are first babies, then children, then youths, then men. It is so with the nation; so with mankind. The human race started with no culture, no religion, no morals, even no manners, having only desires and faculties within, and the world without. Now we have attained much more. But it has taken many centuries for mankind to pass from primeval barbarism to the present stage of comfort, science, civilization, and refinement. It has been the work of two hundred generations; perhaps of more. But ea
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A SERMON OF POVERTY.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 14, 1849.
A SERMON OF POVERTY.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 14, 1849.
Last Sunday something was said of riches. To-day I ask your attention to a sermon of poverty. By poverty, I mean the state in which a man does not have enough to satisfy the natural wants of food, raiment, shelter, warmth and the like. From the earliest times that we know of, there have been two classes of men, the rich who had more than enough, the poor who had less. In one of the earliest books which treats of the condition of men, we find that Abraham, a rich man, owns the bodies of three hun
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A SERMON OF THE MORAL CONDITION OF BOSTON.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1849.
A SERMON OF THE MORAL CONDITION OF BOSTON.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1849.
A man who has only the spirit of his age can easily be a popular man; if he have it in an eminent degree, he must be a popular man in it: he has its hopes and its fears; his trumpet gives a certain and well-known sound; his counsel is readily appreciated; the majority is on his side. But he cannot be a wise magistrate, a just judge, a competent critic, or a profitable preacher. A man who has only the spirit of a former age can be none of these four things; and not even a popular man. He remember
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SOME ACCOUNT OF THE INSTALLATION OF MR. PARKER.
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE INSTALLATION OF MR. PARKER.
Boston , November 28, 1845. Dear Sir :— Among your friends and congregation at the Melodeon, a Society has been organized according to law; and we have been instructed, as the Standing Committee, to invite you to become its Minister. It gives us great pleasure to be the means to forward, in this small degree, the end proposed, and we cordially extend you the invitation, with the sincere hope that it will meet a favorable answer. We are, truly and respectfully, Your friends, Mark Healey , John Fl
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MR. PARKER'S REPLY.
MR. PARKER'S REPLY.
To Mark Healey, John Flint, Levi B. Meriam, Amos Coolidge, John G. King, Sidney Homer, Henry Smith, George W. Robinson, and C. M. Ellis, Esquires. Dear Friends :— When I received your communication of the 28th ult. I did not hesitate in my decision, but I have delayed giving you a formal reply, in order that I might confer with my friends in this place, whom it becomes my painful duty to leave. I accept your invitation; but wish it to be provided that our connection may at any time be dissolved,
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IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. II.
IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. II.
BOSTON: HORACE B. FULLER, ( Successor to Walker, Fuller, and Company ,) 245, WASHINGTON STREET. 1867. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by THEODORE PARKER, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts....
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MATTHEW VIII. 20. By their fruits ye shall know them.
MATTHEW VIII. 20. By their fruits ye shall know them.
Last Sunday I said something of the moral condition of Boston; to-day I ask your attention to a Sermon of the Spiritual Condition of Boston. I use the word spiritual in its narrower sense, and speak of the condition of this town in respect to piety. A little while since, in a sermon of piety, I tried to show that love of God lay at the foundation of all manly excellence, and was the condition of all noble, manly development; that love of truth, love of justice, love of love, were respectively th
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SOME THOUGHTS ON THE MOST CHRISTIAN USE OF THE SUNDAY.—A SERMON PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 30, 1848.
SOME THOUGHTS ON THE MOST CHRISTIAN USE OF THE SUNDAY.—A SERMON PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 30, 1848.
From past ages we have received many valuable institutions, that have grown out of the transient wants or the permanent nature of man. Amongst these are two which have done a great service in promoting the civilization of mankind, which still continue amongst us. I speak now of the institution of Sunday, and that of preaching. By the one, a seventh part of the time is separated from the common pursuits of life, in order that it may be devoted to bodily relaxation, and to the culture of the spiri
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A SERMON OF IMMORTAL LIFE.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1846.
A SERMON OF IMMORTAL LIFE.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1846.
It is the belief of mankind that we shall all live forever. This is not a doctrine of Christianity alone. It belongs to the human race. You may find nations so rude that they live houseless, in caverns of the earth; nations that have no letters, not knowing the use of bows and arrows, fire or even clothes, but no nation without a belief in immortal life. The form of that belief is often grotesque and absurd; the mode of proof ridiculous; the expectations of what the future life is to be are ofte
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THE PUBLIC EDUCATION OF THE PEOPLE.—AN ADDRESS DELIVERED BEFORE THE ONONDAGA TEACHERS' INSTITUTE, AT SYRACUSE, NEW YORK, OCTOBER 4, 1849.
THE PUBLIC EDUCATION OF THE PEOPLE.—AN ADDRESS DELIVERED BEFORE THE ONONDAGA TEACHERS' INSTITUTE, AT SYRACUSE, NEW YORK, OCTOBER 4, 1849.
Education is the developing and furnishing of the faculties of man. To educate the people is one of the functions of the State. It is generally allowed in the free States of America, that the community owes each child born into it a chance for education, intellectual, moral, and religious. Hence the child has a just and recognized claim on the community for the means of this education, which is to be afforded him, not as a charity, but as a right. The fact indicates the progress mankind has made
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THE POLITICAL DESTINATION OF AMERICA AND THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES.—DELIVERED BEFORE SEVERAL LITERARY SOCIETIES, 1848.
THE POLITICAL DESTINATION OF AMERICA AND THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES.—DELIVERED BEFORE SEVERAL LITERARY SOCIETIES, 1848.
Every nation has a peculiar character, in which it differs from all others that have been, that are, and possibly from all that are to come; for it does not yet appear that the Divine Father of the nations ever repeats himself and creates either two nations or two men exactly alike. However, as nations, like men, agree in more things than they differ, and in obvious things too, the special peculiarity of any one tribe does not always appear at first sight. But if we look through the history of s
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A DISCOURSE OCCASIONED BY THE DEATH OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. DELIVERED AT THE MELODEON, IN BOSTON, MARCH 5, 1848.
A DISCOURSE OCCASIONED BY THE DEATH OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. DELIVERED AT THE MELODEON, IN BOSTON, MARCH 5, 1848.
Within a few days one of the most distinguished statesmen of the age has passed away; a man who has long been before the public, familiarly known in the new world and the old. He was one of the prominent monuments of the age. It becomes us to look at his life, works, and public character, with an impartial eye; to try him by the Christian standard. Let me extenuate nothing, add nothing, and set down nought from any partial love or partial hate. His individuality has been so marked in a long life
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SPEECH AT A MEETING OF THE AMERICAN ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETY, TO CELEBRATE THE ABOLITION OF SLAVERY BY THE FRENCH REPUBLIC, APRIL 6, 1848.
SPEECH AT A MEETING OF THE AMERICAN ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETY, TO CELEBRATE THE ABOLITION OF SLAVERY BY THE FRENCH REPUBLIC, APRIL 6, 1848.
Mr. Chairman ,—The Gentleman before me [42] has made an allusion to Rome. Let me also turn to that same city. Underneath the Rome of the Emperors, there was another Rome; not seen by the sun, known only to a few men. Above, in the sunlight, stood Rome of the Cæsars, with her markets and her armies, her theatres, her temples, and her palaces, glorious and of marble. A million men went through her brazen gates. The imperial city, she stood there, beautiful and admired, the queen of nations. But un
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SPEECH AT FANEUIL HALL, BEFORE THE NEW ENGLAND ANTI-SLAVERY CONVENTION, MAY 31, 1848.
SPEECH AT FANEUIL HALL, BEFORE THE NEW ENGLAND ANTI-SLAVERY CONVENTION, MAY 31, 1848.
The design of the Abolitionists is this,—to remove and destroy the institution of slavery. To accomplish this well, two things are needed, ideas and actions. Of the ideas first, and then a word of the actions. What is the idea of the abolitionists? Only this, That all men are created free, endowed with unalienable rights; and in respect of those rights, that all men are equal. This is the idea of Christianity, of human nature. Of course, then, no man has a right to take away another's rights; of
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SOME THOUGHTS ON THE FREE SOIL PARTY AND THE ELECTION OF GENERAL TAYLOR. DECEMBER, 1848.
SOME THOUGHTS ON THE FREE SOIL PARTY AND THE ELECTION OF GENERAL TAYLOR. DECEMBER, 1848.
The people of the United States have just chosen an officer, who, for the next four years, will have more power than any monarch of Europe; yet three years ago he was scarcely known out of the army in Florida, and even now has appeared only in the character of a successful general. His supporters at the North intend, by means of his election, to change the entire commercial policy of the country, and perhaps, also, its financial policy; they contemplate, or profess to contemplate, a great change
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IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. III.
IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. III.
BOSTON: HORACE B. FULLER, ( Successor to Walker, Fuller, and Company ,) 245, Washington Street. 1867. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by THEODORE PARKER, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts....
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SPEECH AT A MEETING OF THE CITIZENS OF BOSTON, IN FANEUIL HALL, MARCH 25, 1850, TO CONSIDER THE SPEECH OF MR. WEBSTER.
SPEECH AT A MEETING OF THE CITIZENS OF BOSTON, IN FANEUIL HALL, MARCH 25, 1850, TO CONSIDER THE SPEECH OF MR. WEBSTER.
Mr. President and Fellow Citizens: It is an important occasion which has brought us together. A great crisis has occurred in the affairs of the United States. There is a great question now before the people. In any European country west of Russia and east of Spain, it would produce a revolution, and be settled with gunpowder. It narrowly concerns the material welfare of the nation. The decision that is made will help millions of human beings into life, or will hinder and prevent millions from be
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"CALIFORNIA,
"CALIFORNIA,
What does Mr. Webster say in view of all this? "If a proposition were now here for a government for New Mexico, and it was moved to insert a provision for the prohibition of slavery, I would not vote for it." Why not vote for it? There is a specious pretence, which is publicly proclaimed, but there is a real reason for it which is not mentioned! In the face of all these facts, Mr. Webster says that these men would wish "to protect the everlasting snows of Canada from the pest of slavery by the s
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SPEECH AT THE NEW ENGLAND ANTI-SLAVERY CONVENTION IN BOSTON, MAY 29, 1850.
SPEECH AT THE NEW ENGLAND ANTI-SLAVERY CONVENTION IN BOSTON, MAY 29, 1850.
Mr. President,—If we look hastily at the present aspect of American affairs, there is much to discourage a man who believes in the progress of his race. In this republic, with the Declaration of Independence for its political creed, neither of the great political parties is hostile to the existence of slavery. That institution has the continual support of both the whig and democratic parties. There are now four eminent men in the Senate of the United States, all of them friends of slavery. Two o
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A DISCOURSE OCCASIONED BY THE DEATH OF THE LATE PRESIDENT TAYLOR.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, JULY 14, 1850.
A DISCOURSE OCCASIONED BY THE DEATH OF THE LATE PRESIDENT TAYLOR.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, JULY 14, 1850.
Last Sunday, on a day near the national anniversary, something was said of the relation which the American citizen bears to the State, and of the duties and rights which belong to that relation. Since then an event has occurred which suggests another topic of a public nature, and so I invite your attention to a discourse of the general position and duties of an American ruler, and in special of the late President Taylor. It is no pleasant task to rise to speak so often on such themes as this, bu
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THE FUNCTION AND PLACE OF CONSCIENCE, IN RELATION TO THE LAWS OF MEN: A SERMON FOR THE TIMES.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 1850.
THE FUNCTION AND PLACE OF CONSCIENCE, IN RELATION TO THE LAWS OF MEN: A SERMON FOR THE TIMES.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 1850.
There are some things which are true, independent of all human opinions. Such things we call facts. Thus it is true that one and one are equal to two, that the earth moves round the sun, that all men have certain natural unalienable rights, rights which a man can alienate only for himself, and not for another. No man made these things true; no man can make them false. If all the men in Jerusalem and ever so many more, if all the men in the world, were to pass a unanimous vote that one and one we
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THE STATE OF THE NATION, CONSIDERED IN A SERMON FOR THANKSGIVING DAY.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, NOVEMBER 28, 1850.
THE STATE OF THE NATION, CONSIDERED IN A SERMON FOR THANKSGIVING DAY.—PREACHED AT THE MELODEON, NOVEMBER 28, 1850.
We come together to-day, by the Governor's proclamation, to give thanks to God for our welfare, not merely for our happiness as individuals or as families, but for our welfare as a people. How can we better improve this opportunity, than by looking a little into the condition of the people? And accordingly I invite your attention to a Sermon of the State of this Nation. I shall try to speak of the Condition of the nation itself, then of the Causes of that condition, and, in the third place, of t
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THE CHIEF SINS OF THE PEOPLE.—A SERMON DELIVERED AT THE MELODEON, BOSTON, ON FAST DAY, APRIL 10, 1851.
THE CHIEF SINS OF THE PEOPLE.—A SERMON DELIVERED AT THE MELODEON, BOSTON, ON FAST DAY, APRIL 10, 1851.
My Friends,—This is a day of Public Humiliation and Prayer. We have one every year. It is commonly in the city churches only a farce, because there is no special occasion for it, and the general need is not felt. But such is the state of things in the Union at this moment, and particularly in Boston, that, if it were not a custom, it would be a good thing, even if it were for the first time in the history of our country, to have such a day for Humiliation and Prayer, that we consider the state o
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THE THREE CHIEF SAFEGUARDS OF SOCIETY.—CONSIDERED IN A SERMON AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JULY 6, 1851.
THE THREE CHIEF SAFEGUARDS OF SOCIETY.—CONSIDERED IN A SERMON AT THE MELODEON, ON SUNDAY, JULY 6, 1851.
This is the first Sunday after the anniversary of the national birth-day. It seems proper, on this occasion, to go beyond matters merely personal, and affecting us only as individuals. I will speak of the duties of man in a wider sphere; of political affairs. So I ask your attention to a Sermon of the Safeguards of Society. I choose this subject, because some men profess a fear that American society is in danger, and because some persons are busily teaching doctrines which seem hostile to the ve
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THE POSITION AND DUTIES OF THE AMERICAN SCHOLAR.—AN ADDRESS DELIVERED AT WATERVILLE, AUGUST 8, 1849.
THE POSITION AND DUTIES OF THE AMERICAN SCHOLAR.—AN ADDRESS DELIVERED AT WATERVILLE, AUGUST 8, 1849.
Men of a superior culture get it at the cost of the whole community, and therefore, at first owe for their education. They must pay back an equivalent, or else remain debtors to mankind, debtors forever; that is, beggars or thieves, such being the only class that are thus perpetually in debt and a burden to the race. It is true that every man, the rudest Prussian boor, as well as Von Humboldt, is indebted to mankind for his culture, to their past history and their existing institutions, to their
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