The Unintended Irony

[LincolnMan]

Booth assassinated President Lincoln on Good Friday. The timing of the deed couldn't have been worse for Booth who hated him. I suppose he didn't give much thought (if any) to the notion that killing Lincoln on Easter weekend would serve to further the president into "sainthood"- as comparisons between Lincoln and Christ were inevitable. And that's the irony!

[HerbS]

Bill,I agree with your post 100%.

[L Verge]

So many sermons were preached along that level on Easter Sunday and days afterwards. I wonder if any of the papers that Booth read while hiding in Charles County mentioned that ironic line of religious thought.

[LincolnMan]

Laurie: I've wondered that also. We know Booth did not like what he read- how the media was largely condeming him for his deed- but I don't recall any account that may have mentioned Booth reading of the Sunday sermons. Any input fellow Forum members?

Herb: thank you! Hope you are well.

[HerbS]

Bill,We were moving on Thursday and I tripped,and took a "Face Plant"on the tile floor.I went to my Dr.and had X-Rays-Results were-broken nose-concussion-broken bones in my face+pain.I now look like a Panda!This had to be the "Toughest Hit"ever.Especially the closer you get to 70yrs of age.

[L Verge]

Herb, I'm so sorry to hear that. Take care of yourself, rest and heal quickly.

[BettyO]

Herb -

So very sorry to hear about your accident. Four years ago, I was walking to work one morning, tripped on a loose brick on the sidewalk and fell on my face, bloodying my mouth and knocking out a front tooth.

Please take care and get well quickly!

[HerbS]

Thanks everybody!My ballance lacks a lot to be desired!!!!

[Gene C]

Ouch, Sorry to hear about your fall. Getting older is not for wimps.
Our thoughts and prayers are with you for a quick recovery

[Dawn E Foster]

Oh no, Herb, I'm so sorry! Feel better fast. (anyway, you know we all think you're beautiful ...)

[HerbS]

Thanks Dawn,Your trauma was the toughest ever! Whenever in pain-I think of you First!

[richard petersen]

In regard to the first question, I have given thought to this many times. Again it is not for us to judge but the question I have, If Lincoln was such a fine Christian man, why was he at the theater instead of going to church.
Again, I remember a bible verse that says' "judge not, lest ye be judged" Yes, I truly am contradicting myself.

[Gene C]

Perhaps you are thinking of this passage from the book of Hebrews 10:24-25 (New International Version)

"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching."

That's a complicated question, and if you ask 10 different people, you are likely to get 11 different answers. I'm not sure Lincoln ever found a church or minister where his beliefs fit comfortably with their "doctrine". As president, you become the center of attention wherever you go. This may be one of the reasons he did not attend formal worship services consistently when he was president. He would be a distraction from the worship service, when the attention should be focused towards God.

[L Verge]

When one visits the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in D.C., where the Lincolns did attend services on occasion, one of the rooms directly behind and to the side of the main altar (not sure that's what it's called because it is much different than altars I am used to in Catholic, Episcopal, and Methodist Churches) is a parlor where Lincoln often sat to listen to the services because he felt his presence in the nave of the church created a distraction to fellow congregants.

The parlor also contains an original Emancipation Proclamation, I believe, as well as period furniture. The nave of the church has the Lincoln pew marked. The church is also famous for its preacher one hundred years later. Some of you may remember A Man Called Peter, based on the preachings of the mid-20th century Rev. Peter Marshal.

I am unfamiliar with the practices of the Presbyterian church, but did/do they include multiple services on Good Friday? I am an Episcopalian, and we observe a three-hour service from noon to 3 pm only on that day.

[Anita]

Bill,We were moving on Thursday and I tripped,and took a "Face Plant"on the tile floor.I went to my Dr.and had X-Rays-Results were-broken nose-concussion-broken bones in my face+pain.I now look like a Panda!This had to be the "Toughest Hit"ever.Especially the closer you get to 70yrs of age.

Herb, so sorry about your fall with it's painful consequences. Panda faces are cute, on pandas!

Anita