The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1871-01-12
VOLUME. 6--==No. &C..
Religions Tournaments, Building. Ghufthess
-: Starving Preachers, 1cs, -" %:

Religions Tournaments, Building G6ufthess
/: Starving Preachers, Sca -" r|.
A respected correspondence Whites to knowT
our opinion aboiit the; propriety Of holding
tournaments for the purpuseFef assistirB:fN
build churches. The subject had nsyer tie,
ceived our consideration because ne had not
heard of tournaments in the character of fnan-
cial religious de7ices.S WeAhad heard Of be-
nevelent ballsIand pious lotteries and sane,is,
ed7bazaars, but mot of 3coIsecrated touEns=
ments. Now we, believe as Paul did ab5tt
some common practices in his day, that tourna-
ments are nothing at all to religion IfG
number Of young men think, it worth while to
spend months il. training to compete with one
another in the noble trial of poking b brsom-
handle through curtain-ring, and If the eoh-
testants in this pretty game can call themselves
"knights," and their play tournament
without q. keen sense of the ridiculous; ia
short, if the burlesque of the old knightly con-
tests can be enjoyed we see no -impropriety In
it more than in any other juvenile trivolity.
When, however, balls are added to the tourna-,
ment, we have very great objections 10 them.
They then SAVIOR very strongly Of evil. We
abhor balls, and particularly public balls.
They are evil, and only'evil, to body, mind and
spirit. In expressing an opinion about tourna-
mcnts, we are really considering the balls which,
follow, and which are to the girls the greatest
attraction. The very innocence OF young woe
men makes them unable to comprehend the.
evil of these dances, and their very common
ignorance of more rational enioyments makes
them enjoy the animal exercise and nervous
exhiliration of the ball. -
Now, to give balls for church purposes, Is
simply. to profess to do evil that good may
come. But it is not true. Nobody holds tent.,
naments for church purposes. The effort Is
only to tax the church for the tournament, not
only by getting money for the tournanlent;that
would not otherwise be given, but in bribing
the church to-. sanction ,amusements OF doubt:
ful propriety. We are opposed to all these
profers of aid from the opposite party. They
take far more from us in virtue than they re-
turn in coin. There are no communities in
this country too poor to provide themselves
with places of worship. For many years this
house where we are writing was the only Meth.
odist preaching place for this neighborhood:
The house was large enough ior Asbury
and the great men of old to do the work Of
their apostleship in it,. Amy community can
build a comfortable log-cabin or shed, in q few
weeks that would accommodate them for hear
ing preaching. But people are not satisfied
with the necessaries Of life in. religion more
than in other things. We all want to have
churches finer than we are willing to pay for.
We are Sensitive about our "respectability"f in
this matter, and We, subject euraelxes to the
modification of begging ffenl and getting uns
der obligations of recognition and respect to
men and mems inventions really obnoxious to
us. -
There is another thing on our mind about
church, building. We are measuring our suc-
cess by the number of churches we are build
ing, obvious of the fact that ne are starving
the preachers to build them. 1t would be
curious calculation; and the result oft 'wonld
be startling, to estimate how! much Of the esmaH
salaries. allotted to our preachers in the BaltI
more Conference has been held back because
Of the expense Of building churches. Now,iwe
would be glad to see churches built everywhere
they could berused, but we protest hgainst
building. them at the cost of the preachers.
The first necessity is not a church, but .lnin-
ister; and the minister should be adequately
supported We know circuits where the MIN
istry are so pinched that their life is intolern.
BILE, and they are preparing to leave the work;
yet the people are building churches, and build
ing them with the money due to the preacher:
Dear friends, let us be plain with your God
owns the ministers They are His servants.
He hires them to YOU for wages, the amount Of
which you fix yourself; and you owe that mon
ey to man and God. It is not optional with
you to pay or not to- pay. .The official mem
bers who promise it are bound to use all posi-
BILE efforts to procure it., from the people. We
confess we are more concerned about the sup
port of the ministers t!iafi we are about build
Ing churches They are for the convenience
OF the people; and will be provided, but the
preachers. are TO large extent forgotten.-
Their wants are not. .obtrusive. The people are
not made uncomfortable by their privations.
But we NAV rest assured that if q congregation
should build church as big as St. Peters, AND
neglect proper provision for their preacher,
the splendid place of worship would be of lit
tie use to them. "Do unto others as you would
that they should do to you,'' is very largs
part of religion, and the part about the genu-
ineness of which. there is least difficulty in. de-
cision. Depend upon it, if we do not love
(not serItimentaly-for the Bible does not
know anything about sentiment separate from.
facts)-if we do not love our minister, whom
we see, we do not love his Master, whom we do
not sec and when We send away our preacher
in debt and destitution, because we have not
paid what we promised him, "inasmuch SIS We
do it 10 the least of these, we do it unto Him."
Many will say, in that day, Lord Lord we
built churches, we ratified for dolls, and went to
tournaments, and danced at balls, and starved
preachers, for Thy sake" But the King shall
say, "When was a:hungered. We gave me 10
meat" ."-Baitimore Christian Adrocate. IT,,
AT THE Tlp-Tops HOUSE party of scicn,
tifc men have established themselves for the
winter on the top of Mount Washington, in
New Hampshire, where for months they. will
be isolated from the rest of the world, and will
experience all the rigors Of an arctic climate,
in addition to the fury of winds whirling along
at a velocity of 100 miles an hour. The party
consists of Professor J. II. Huntington, of Oar
mouth College, Assistant State Geologst; s.
A. Nelson of Georgetown, Mass AF. Clough,
photographer; and telegrapher. The build
ing occupied is sixty by seventy-two, and
twenty five feet high. The main room is
sast l;,,s6l sc:.l .;,,la