The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1873-09-25
Religions and Educational.

The bill for the separation of Church
and State in Spain guarantees the entire
independence Of religious corporations
under present conditions. The nuns are,
as now, to have their pensions, which,
after their death will revert to the State.
Buildings erected for religious purposes
will not be disturbed.
The New York Observer don't like the
modern style of churches, and thinks it
| strange to hear them sing in such places,
THE Lord is in His Holy Temple" when
| these churches are conglomcration of
preaching-rooms, prayer-rooms, cooking
rooms, packing-rooms, and pantry, dumb
waiter, refrigerator and wash-house!
Professor A. G. Kendrick, of Roches.
ter, is almost as famous for his quiet hui
NOR as for his fine scholarship. 1t is re-
Gently related of him that being asked by
one of his students what he thought of the
scholars who rendered the Greek PROPOSE
tiOn els, in connection with baptism, to the
soater, instead of into, he replied: II
should say they slipped up on the ice"
Some one in the Adoance shows by
actual figures that the 10000 members of
the $50 Congregational churches in ILL.,
nois gave little more than two cents a
week each to their five different benevo-
lent objects. 1t is estimated that if all the
members of the Congregational churches
in the nine Northwestern States had given
two cents apiece and no more each Sun
day for the cause of the American Board,
the aggregate would have been two-thirds
more than the sum realized.
That old question of running blast
furnaces on Sunday has been brought up
to distress some iron-men at Leland and
Wyandotte, Mich. Some one has taken
up the cudgel IAN iron one, it must be,
from the heavy blows he strikes and calls
upon the wealthy furnace.owncrs in that
section to observe the Sabbath rest princi-
pie. Heretofore it has been generally &C
knowledged that furnace could not be
stopped for day without danger, or at
least that good iron could not be made;
but this Leland writer comes out with
facts at his back showing that there are
furnaces making the best of iron which
stop running on Sunday. New methods
of iron manufacture make this possible,
and our reformer proposes to let the pub
lie know it in the face Of riuiCuie ana
fn~n scleice, which some people associ-
ate with irreligion, should demonstro.s
that in this respect it is not necessary to
infringe upon the sanctity of the day of
rest.
Some Church statistics have been
gathered from the census of 1870 by Hon.
Amasa Walker, which in their way are
quite suggestive. He gives table print
ed in the COngregatsonalist) showing the
wealth belonging to the different denomi-
nations, SO far as it can be ascertained
from the value Of their church property,
which may be said to represent with con-
siderable accuracy the pecuniary ability
of the w0rshipers. In exceptional in
ed in various forms, but these are mostly
in the large cities. Beginning with the
Methodists, we find that the 81 1897 edifices
have an average value of 1924, and they
can accommodate six and a half million
worshipers; the Baptists have 1857
churches, with not quite four million sit
tings, valued at So, 042 the reunited Pres
byterlan edifices number 1858, at an aver
age value of 1858, sittings, 1850, 600; the
Roman Catholics have 3,8O6 churches,
valued at $16,023 each, on the average,
and their sittings number not quite two
millions; the Congregationalist churches,
numbering ATS, are estimated at 9,234
each, sittings, 1,117,2OO; then come the
Episcopalians, with 1901 edifices, rang
ing at the higher value of $14, 039, sittings
col, 600; Universalists, churches, coz,
value $9,436, sittings 21O, $50; Reformed,
churches 46S, value $2,135, sittings 227,-
228; Unitarian, churches $40, value $780,
200, sittings 155, All; Jews, synagogues
152, value 1915, sittings 1926. The
Lutheran statistics are not given, but they
are one of our largest bodies, numbering
about $500 churches. Figures, as rule,
are usually dry reading, but the foregoing
bear upon the questions of denomination
al policy and influence. The largest de-
nominations reach the poorer classes, the
smallest the richer, from which it might