The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1875-11-15

lBy telegraph 10 the Tribunel
PHILADELPHIA, November Sin the an.
,nual Church Congress OF the Protestant
Episcopal Church the subject for tits eve
ming was 90 Minissrations Of the Church To
the Working CiassesD Careful papers were
read by the Rev. DR.. John Vaughn Lewis, OF
Washington, d. c., and HeBry PelleY, OF
! New York. Dr.. Lewis said that the Church
OF the Great Workman who made every
ching. and without whom nothing was made
chat was made, and the Church of jesus the
sol, Of the carpenter, and himself q car
penter, should be workingmen' church. 1t
must not be q rich mans Church, open to
the poor, but poor mans Church, open 10
the rich, the learned. and the great. II must
be the Church OF the masses, or it would sosn
become an extinguished candle. The lsbor-
ing classes were peculiarly open to the minis
tratiens Of the Church, but the Church DOES
not take sufficient care to tit itself into the
conditions OF their life. They are too often
shut out by high pew.rents, or By an arro-
CANT exclusiveness, or provided with poor
Observation-Disclosures and poor ministers. In
England the Church has retained the
working classes. In this country 1t
welcomes them In theory, but its minis
tiers are more apt to labor TO proseayte the
churches that have been established do not
meet the need. They are usually debt,
and the envelope system, adopted by some,
is only a euphemlsm for pew-rent. The me-
thod snggested BY DR.. Lewis of making the
Church do its duty better by the poor was
either 70 build large church edifices, 50 as to
make pew.repts cheap, or to creates public
sentiment that win make It disgraceful for
any one to carry bis social prejudices to the
house Of Ged. There should be plenty OF
free seats In. the best churches, with the best
preachers and the best choirs and an earnest
effort should be made to arouse the Church
TO asense Of her duty to the average Ameri-
Mr.. Peilew spoke Of many causes which
operated to- keep the poor away from the
Church; high pew-rents, the rapid increase
OF population in cities, and the dissemination
OF ipfidel literature In cheap, popular form,
being among the most serious. In order to
make existing church accommodations sufi-
cient for larger membership he recommended
extra services where all sittings should be
free,-an experiment tried in London With
marked success. A miSsion.house 10 each city
parish would do "a great work In Bringing the
masses within the fold Of the Church. II
should be the headquarters Of all:@th
Church charitable societies, should have
q library and reaaing-room, besides
room for religious services. A savings
bank might also be added. A mission chapel,
where such mission.hou could not be
established, would be valuable aid. Week
day services should be held, to which work.
ipgmen could come in their working.
clothes. a school should be combined with
il. Church lodging-houses for respectable
Young people would be found useful, and
there should be burial associations to care
for the dead. In these and many other ways
the Church could show itself to be the friend
of The poor. and win them to its ministra.
lions. = = -.
Inthe discussion, by seyen-mnute speeches,
which followed the reading Of these papers,
the Rev. j. Fl. Rylance, of New York, ar
eued in favor of relieving the rigidity of the
Church services and admitting a larger varie.
ty of offices and mnistrations. The stereo-
typtd morning and evening services are Of
ten no: effective aids but hinderances to the
efforts to evaugflze the masses. IHsseS ard
applause.] We should welcome, he sale,
more manifold and tumultuous religious
life than we can hope to see with the
old traditional restraints. "Let us have
short, hearty services, prayer. meetings, ex-
perience. meetings, and meetings for sacred
song" These views were further deyel-
oped, and although they were received with
some signs Of disapproval, they were warmly
welcomed by the great majority Of the au-
dience and by many Of the ministers on the
platform.
Mr. S. Wagner. Jr., of Philadelphia, spoke
in favor Of shorter services, made SO elastic
as to the portions Of the Liturgy and Ritual
used as to be adapted to attract the masses.
He alse opposed the system OF. renting pews.
as the chief obstacle to bring the lab0ring
classes into the Church. The discussion was
continued by William Welcb, Esq. of Phila-
delphis, Russell Sturges, Of Boston, and
others. -. t@I -.