The New York herald., 1876-10-09

|
The iair, which time since was announced in
connection with this church, Is now open, and the
friends Of st. Stephens invited TO give 1t all the
encouragement IN their power. The tables are all
| loaded with Interesting and valuable articles, well
! worth the money at which they offered num-
bcr OF attractions may also be saen making visit TO
the fair both pleasant and profitable. The proceeds
arc to 20 to pay on the heavy debt resting on the
| church.
TOMPKINS AVENUE CHURCH.
DEDICATINa AN IMPROVED EDIrICE-REv. C..
/ ID. HKLMER ON CHURCH ARCHITECTURE.
| For some time past the interior Of the Tompkins
avenue Congregational church. Tompkins avenue, near
Fulton street, Brooklyn, has been undergoing extensive
repairs Yesterday 1t was reopencd Tor worship, and
the congregation must indeed hard please they
be not satisfied with the work accomplished by those
who had the overseeing Of the alterations Tho exte-
ror of the building which OF the Gothic style Of
architecture marvel of beauty TO look upon. while
the interior, In regard comfort arrangements for
light, acoustic properties and general arrangement is
OF the best appointed Of its capacity in this
part Of the country As the services yesterday
ing partook OF dedicatory character some tasteful
effort had been made at decoration Across the base
OF the organ, which just in the and above tho
minister's PLATFORM was arranged in floral design tho
sentence, sour New Home" On each end OF the
platform rustic stands mounted with baskets of
flowers floral offerings also rested each side OF
tho pastors reading desk.
THE DEDIcAToRY SERMON.
Rev. c. D. Helmer, the pastor. preached tho morn
ing discourse. His text derived from the twenty
eighth chapter OF Genesis, in which 10 related how
Jacob up the morning and took the stone
which had bcen his pillow, and, consecrating It with
oil, erected it a pillar TO the Lord, calling tho
place Bethel The preacher said that nothing could be
more simple religious than this historic Incl
dent fragment Of stone, or perhaps several, piled
up into heap their sides bearing the lines and marks
atmospheric changes Of ages, were erected into
temple, marking the locality of this special mancsta
tion. II remained also as memorial because God
promises were about TO bc fulfilled To begin WITH
God Is everywhere 10 the world; wo can conceive
OF place where He is not, but He may man
iiest Himself a special manner Every tree '6nd
every blossom thereon Is u manifestation OF His
but there is only one which did not become shryeed
| up when He made II HIS dwelling place. Every
mountain tells OF His being but there Is only ono
| Sinai There Is island tho face OF the globe
where He not but there is only Patmos. These
special manifestations the experience Of every
human soul, and when they have occurred they
mcmbered either by tho erection Of monument
which the eye can see, or by sacred memories which
arc never by time enaced. While Jacob had tath IL
was all very rudo kind OF faith and If but
| follow the history OF the nation Tor few hundred
wears we will ind that it had become so cultivated and
the conception OF tie divine enlarged to produce
exclaimed, "God cannot be housed in any dwelling
| may build"
GROWTH CHURCH ARCHITECTURE.
Jacob did the best he could: he was not builder,
/ no more but the point wish TO lay stress upon is
that church building is subject TO the great law OF prog
Dean Stanley says that Bethel was the precursor
OF all that has followed in church architecture The
Church itself religious organization is subject
the law OF growth and development. Do you believe
the Church Of to-day is better than that OF 100
agos IL ought to be II It Is not and the Church
OF 100 In the future should be better than that OF
to-day. The Church as founded by the apostles is
accountable for deeds which II committed in any
church in the city Of BROOKLYN would place
could not stand without change for any
length Of time without pcrishing. Nobody
| looks back at Adam as the most perfect gentleman
Indeed, scientists rate him very low in the aud
IN accordance with thc law o progress the final
should be The most perfect man Tne religious nature
| OF cannot be developed separately, or without
ASSOCIATION, without art. science and social inter-
course. Make the attempt to produce perfect ami
mai out OF n man by cultivating his physical powers
only and you will leave HIM worse than you ouad
him. He Will be inferior to the horse or tho elephant
You cannot take man apart and develop him IN Soc
tions The ascctic, moral, religious; all must bo pat
together and developed In order TO produce symmet-
BY what he knows by what he is II the men
OF early times had thought OF erecting house OF God
the cavern would have been their design But In the
| beauty OF Grecian culture the Parthenon resulted.
WHAT CHURCH KDlFlCR SHOULD BE-
| The church edifcc should be the embodiment OF the
most cultured idea Of religion There are two idea
which seem equally to possess the minds Of church
going people, the first being that the cdnce is the
| dwelling place oil God. TINS the old Hebrew IDEAS
Moral evil had proaned the planet and the earth had
/ become defcd, but God does not leave man 10 his
apostacv. Wnen man erecs temple does he not take
the trsc rock and they become sacred only be-
cause dedicated TO God Tho other idea Is that the
cdhce is the exclusive OF the worshippcr This
is the Puritan des and the origin the meet
ing house" They had idea that God dwelt there
than their forests heids and does II not
| that when our Lord and Saviour wished 70 commune
especially with the Father He chose not the temple,
but the mountain top Both ideas, however. seem
necessary 10 satisfy our thoughts, and so both should
| he recognized. Is there any reason why church
architecture should be any different than In buildings
used for other purposes think there Is. church
breaches ana the passerby is influenced whether per-
| ceptby or not by It's presence. am not sure even
that time come when the spire should be done
awav with tor towers above the broad structure
beneath. Is representation OF The material of the
earth reaching up and vanishing into tho immacrial
Both OF the ideas spoken oil may operate separately
and yet in harmony. May not tho exterior OF church
be OF Gothic style and yet tho inside be comfortable
occupants The inside Is built for man, and
can say It without being rreverent that God l. not
| made uncomfortable by reason OF mans comfort being
| attended to- The first question: them that building
committee should consider IS, How can thus room be
| tended?
PROTESTANT CHURCH ARCHITECTURE coypKMyKp.
Protestant churches since the Reformation have not
bscn what they should have been alter tearing away
from tho mother church. may be asked, What are the
requirements OF the Protestant church and answer
that every should have an unobstructed view OF the
person came to hear and bc abs 10 hear
word that person uttcrs building committee that
breaks one OF these rules Is incompetent II ~ for
this reason that the anphithsatrc or semcircuar ar
rangement has been adopted here But some may say,
THAT'S the way theatres are built y Well what ofug
\ would ike the Protestant church 10 change with the
theatres in this respect, and u ! had any enmity
arainst theatres 1 would ask no kcener retribution
than TO have the style OF Protestant architecture
which vogue for the past 800 years adopted
by them; for then they would surely die In speaking
priests; they OF the brethren and al the sane
| ity they possessed their characters and the
work they performed II they are venerable then they