Previous William Thomas Sherman Info Page postings, quotes, observations, etc.
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THE NEW YORK LIGHT GUARD
[This is getting A BIT ahead of ourselves chronologically - 1839 - but I was so taken with this Currier and Ives print, and accompanying march (music), I could hardly help myself.]
Although the New York Light Guard was originally an active city of New York militia battalion, and that saw service of one sort or other in the War of 1812 and the Civil War, today it exists as The Old Guard of the City of New York, a ceremonial unit intended for veteran get-togethers, parades and charity events. But even in its earlier hey-day, and in addition to standing ready to defend the city against potential invaders, the Guard served as a kind of social gathering point; both to bring together friends and impress the girls. All of which are made an object of fun and mirth in Irving and Paulding's Salmagundi (1807); for which see:
http://www.gunjones.com/Salmagundi-excerpt1807.pdf
[Salmagundi, No. V. – Saturday, March 7, 1807]
Finally we have also for your enjoyment the actual New York Guard's march by Francis H. Brown, advertised in the Currier & Ives print, from 1839 available on YouTube:
["Yankee Brass Band 2017. Quickstep - New York Light Guards; F. H. Brown"]
(From the archives.)
["Why Worry Chet Atkins Mark Knopfler & Everly Brothers" - 1986]
[ch. 9]
He [Celsus] next proceeds to recommend, that in adopting opinions we should follow reason and a rational guide, since he who assents to opinions without following this course is very liable to be deceived. And he compares inconsiderate believers to Metragyrtæ, and soothsayers, and Mithræ, and Sabbadians, and to anything else that one may fall in with, and to the phantoms of Hecate, or any other demon or demons. For as among such persons are frequently to be found wicked men, who, taking advantage of the ignorance of those who are easily deceived, lead them away whither they will, so also, he says, is the case among Christians. And he asserts that certain persons who do not wish either to give or receive a reason for their belief, keep repeating, “Do not examine, but believe!” and, “Your faith will save you!” And he alleges that such also say, “The wisdom of this life is bad, but that foolishness is a good thing!”...And let us inquire, with respect to the great multitude of believers, who have washed away the mire of wickedness in which they formerly wallowed, whether it were better for them to believe without a reason, and (so) to have become reformed and improved in their habits, through the belief that men are chastised for sins, and honoured for good works or not to have allowed themselves to be converted on the strength of mere faith, but (to have waited) until they could give themselves to a thorough examination of the (necessary) reasons...
~ Origen (c. 184-c. 253), Contra Celsus, Book I
This 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon mission has provided an excellent occasion for learning; not least of which in and by way of the plethora of recent and not so recently uploaded YouTube videos on the subject. I have already have been through many of them, and among the best are a series-set entitled "Apollo 11 Full Mission" available at:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLC1yaZz2qeGrhndH7zOnooziqxS09MI33
And in which you can, in effect, take a ride with the Apollo crew (God bless 'em!) on their in certain ways quiet and placid ride to the moon, and which also serves to remind us that for all its often terrors "it's a small world after all."
[ch. 7]
Moreover, since he [Celsus] frequently calls the Christian doctrine a secret system (of belief), we must confute him on this point also, since almost the entire world is better acquainted with what Christians preach than with the favourite opinions of philosophers. For who is ignorant of the statement that Jesus was born of a virgin, and that He was crucified, and that His resurrection is an article of faith among many, and that a general judgment is announced to come, in which the wicked are to be punished according to their deserts, and the righteous to be duly rewarded? And yet the mystery of the resurrection, not being understood, is made a subject of ridicule among unbelievers.
~ Origen (c. 184-c. 253), Contra Celsus, Book I
["Kreutzer, Rudolphe 18 th violin concerto"]
(For the benefit of those who might never see this otherwise. Needless to add: "There are such things!")
["the elegants - little star"]
[ch. 27]
Any one who examines the subject will see that Jesus attempted and successfully accomplished works beyond the reach of human power. For although, from the very beginning, all things opposed the spread of His doctrine in the world, — both the princes of the times, and their chief captains and generals, and all, to speak generally, who were possessed of the smallest influence, and in addition to these, the rulers of the different cities, and the soldiers, and the people—yet it proved victorious, as being the Word of God, the nature of which is such that it cannot be hindered; and becoming more powerful than all such adversaries, it made itself master of the whole of Greece, and a considerable portion of Barbarian lands, and convened countless numbers of souls to His religion. And although, among the multitude of converts to Christianity, the simple and ignorant necessarily outnumbered the more intelligent, as the former class always does the latter, yet Celsus, unwilling to take note of this, thinks that this philanthropic doctrine, which reaches to every soul under the sun, is vulgar, and on account of its vulgarity and its want of reasoning power, obtained a hold only over the ignorant. And yet he himself admits that it was not the simple alone who were led by the doctrine of Jesus to adopt His religion; for he acknowledges that there were among them some persons of moderate intelligence, and gentle disposition, and possessed of understanding, and capable of comprehending allegories.
~ Origen (c. 184-c. 253), Contra Celsus, Book I
