Wyoming democrat. [volume] (Tunkhannock, Wyoming Co., Pa.) 1867-1940, 1867-10-23
Politics in the Pulpit.

sensible advice to that large class OF oui
clergymen who, for several years past
has given more attention to partisan poll
tics than to the principles and duties Of
christianity. The demoralizing effect up
on the churches and the disadvantage to
religion resulting from the course of these
preachers cannot be estimated. 1t is to
be hoped that the sentiment of the peo-
pie, as lately expressed, and as it doubtless
will be continued to be expressed, will
serve to teach these misled leaders in the
cause of religion, their inability to control
the political opinions of the public, and to
convince them that, hereafter, they can
best serve the interests of mankind by
preaching the gospel, pure ard undefiled
by partisan malignity or sectional preju.
dice.
The PULPr's OPPoRTUNIrY.-Now is
the time for ministers of the gospel to give
up political preaching. We are satisfied
that the majority of those pastors who
have mixed politics with their theology
in the proportions of nine to one for some
years back have done it against their bet
ter Judgment. They have yielded to the
fashions of the times, to the example of
powerful and successful preachers, to the
real Tor supposedly irresistible current of
! feeling in their congregations, We have
always held them, as a class, to be above
:he sordid aims of politicians, They have
not preached politics for morey, nor for
! vulgar applause; but because they had
/ not sufficient moral strength to resist the
tremendous pressure which was brought to
/ b ar upon them by church conventions and
assemblies. and by active and influential
occupants of pews. In some instances the
/ pressure from the pews was not real, but
| imaginary. The pastor, observing the
tendency of other churches, sought to an
! ticipate it in his own, and with unnccessa-
ry precipitation, put himself at the heal of
his flock and led it into politics Still, as
a general rule, the motive power, when it
did not originate outside of the church,
came from the pews and forced the pastor
to write political addresses under the name
OF sermons, and pray for the success of a
party more than for the coming of Christ's
| kingdom. Their Bible was their text
book-their point of departure, chiefly in
the sense that they departed from it-but
their body of theology was too often taken
from newspaper editorials or from the
platforms of excited public meetings held
during the previous week. Many preach
ers reflected the varying shades of Radical
sentiment so truthfully that by stepping
into their churches on Sunday a person
could learn the condition of the political
atmosphere as from barometer, There
was little gaIniture of religion in the
reading of the scriptures (not always Sc
lected with reference to topics of the day.
in the short prayer possibly, aud in the
formal benediction beyond any doubt, but
these were merely trimmings to the huge
hot joint of pure politics, at which the
preacher cut and came again
This political preaching has been the
shame and scandal of Christ's church. 1t
has been the prolific cause of infdelity not
only outside of the church, but within its
pale; not only in the pews, but in the
pulpit. At first it was a curious novelty,
and pastors found their congregations in
creased, perhaps a hundred fold. Men
focked to the political churches as they
went to the opera, the theatre, or the cir
Gus, to be excited and amused, They
could applaud and they could laugh there
at very smart political hit, freely and
without rcbuke. 1t was religion made ca
sy, and, like virtue made easy, there was
very little of it left when you came to look
for it. Newspapers were used to adyer-
lise these political sermons 10 ADVANCE
Partisan journals published the sermons
the next day, not emitting the cheers and
laughter where they properly came in,
and 1attered the preachers in editorial ar
ticIes. A great deal of the hard work of
the campaign was put upon their shoulders
Some OF them talked politics not only two
or three times every Sunday, but odd even.
ings during the week. They were too will
ing to work, they were too jealous in their
new cause, and they over did it. Safety
in the congregation soon followed excess
in the preacher. The outside attendance
fell off, many of the pew owners who had
liked the thing while it was new got sick
of it at last, and these preachers finally
found themselves in the condition of men
who had liked the thing while it was new
got sick Of it at last, and these preachers
finally found themselves in the condition
of men who having taken false position,
feel compelled, ont of regard to coGssten-
cy, to maintain it at all hazards. In this
resolve they have been encouraged and
sustained by small but active kLots of pol
iticians, who give the tone TO many of our
churches. There are clergymen who
have seen their focks scattered beyond
recall, and their churches sold ont or turn
ed into places of amusement, before they
would consent to re,race their steps to re-
ligion pure and undefled.
Now is the time for ministers to weed
out politics from their religion. The po-
litical reaction, of which we see the signs
all around US, is "a protest against po-
litical preaching and numerous other er-
rors and fallacies. The reactionary feel
ing affects all classes of society, IN all their
/ a. II