The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1885-04-28 00:00:00

"EVANGELIZATION OP THE VILLAUES.-

To the Editor.

_
observe in your Wow of the 24th .4 .tpril
the above WWI the title of an addre.. given by the
Km. T. Neave, and I am thankful that other. have
bevtg mdpVed to apisk on thi. very important topic
a. well a. mnielf. 11r. Neave maid 40 years ago many
.1 the rural church..'., were comparatively atning and
vigoroua, and minor then they hail greatly declined in
many respect., he supposed the reswon being that
tAiri ion I,e lalargehad greatly increased.
Thigeretis niortt.nthte'sligli6ot doubt alsnit that, but them
are other reisions beside., and which to my ndnd
are more formidable than tho.e named. We know
that in many village. thirty or forty year. ago there
wen no iiervioni in many .1 the churches, on the
Sunday evening, and many of the church people limed
tochapel, bid of late yearn there have been in
WHIN. place. three minister. of the Church .4 England
to two village., whereas thirty years the work was
dom. by one. I remember well when Here Kiwi. and
Kingston hail but one clergyman to manage both
lakri.hea and the service WWI held at lien, in
the morning, and at K ing.ton in the afternoon,
but now then, are two at Her. and one at K.,,g^t",,.;
and. of PAM% now the church i. full .4 people at
night the chapel. must go .hort. Things became

loose in the year lag that the few faithful ones com-
menced an open air unaectarian miasion, which helped
to fill the chapel+ and augment the members in Church •
fellowship. Another reason we assign for the small
attendance at aome of the Independent chapels is that
other chapels and placm of worship have sprung up
in addition to those already in existence, and that Is
another drawback, for we shall always find some fond
of novelty, and carried awAy by every innovation.
knew two large villages where Independent or Con-
gregational chapels have been the ntandartl and
tin iodine. of truth this teln years and there Are MM. fur
other chapels ; and I may ield in three places when.
Contriegational chapels have been for that perhsl five
other chapels have bwn built in less than 74 year.,
MI that the Independent chapels 200 yeaN ago had it
pretty much their own way. To-day it is not ko,
and another reason why our Congregational places .4
worship are in low water is because many .4 the
risponsilde men are not soundly converted to God.
They ran neither preach or pray in public, or take
any active part its spiritual things. They rAn manage
the financial part very well ; therefore, they are
*hushed with just the Sunday services and the pulpit
.xxxipied twice aday, and the dwarf Sunday Schools are
attended to. But At eight o'clock the chapels an. shut
in.. and many.of them not opened till the next S
This sh.w way of going .m SOO years itgo will not do
in these days of activity. Not that the blesked plan
tbsl's salvathes can be alteriel, and we dare not
attempt it. We must bestir ourselves if we mean t 0
lkdd our own, when there are so many active agencies
in the field. I would suggest that the chapelpt
he opened at seven o'clock 1/11 Sunday nionting for
prayer, and at least twice in the week ;let more interest
1... taken in the Sunday schools, in the welfare of the
young, and lastly the preachers must adapt them.
,lets. to open air work, and follow the example of •
Congregational prracher, who last Sunday week took
his stand between two publichousai, and delivered
the poled measaire to the people who went neither to
church chapel. That man had 74 persons around
hint listening respectfully, and most of them attend
no pima. worship. The result was that the attend-
ance at the evening service in the chapel was
larger. That preacher also took with I a good
supply of tracts to digtriliute amongst the people.
There must lk. 11161 inure s icitii.g, and In this ...Wit a
good deal of kieulnelia Alai tact are riepaired, coupled
with prudence and discretion, and when the country
people see that we are thoroughly alive to every ip•mel
word and work they will appreciate us and our
meetings,
EVANGELIST.