A Discourse for the Time, delivered January 4, 1852 in the First Congregational Unitarian Church

Delivered on a winter morning in 1852, this sermon opens with a stark account of the blood‑soaked streets of France, where unarmed citizens fell beneath relentless cannon and bayonets. The preacher’s vivid narrative of a woman’s desperate plunge into danger to aid her husband underscores the sheer horror of a revolution run amok. By drawing listeners into these brutal scenes, he sets a pressing tone for the moral questions that follow.

From that dramatic backdrop, the speaker turns to the listener’s own community, arguing that religious duty extends far beyond the sanctuary walls. He challenges the comfortable habit of treating public affairs as “none of our business,” insisting that indifference leaves liberty vulnerable to the very forces that devastate distant lands. The discourse calls every man and woman to awareness and action, framing civic engagement as a sacred responsibility essential to the welfare of all.