New-York tribune., 1876-07-01
A DELICATE QUEST ~


One of the most important s.,bects in any
church, and inosJ suggestive TO outsiders, was
brought mp for discussion in the Presbyterian
General Assembly at its recent session. It's that
of the educational work Of the Church especially
in fitting young mon for the ministry. Com
plaint was made on one hand that this cause
took more feeble hold on the minds of
Prcsbytcrians than any other. MoTe than GO
per cert of the churches had failed to con-
tribute anything whatever to the support and
training OF the body of needy young men who
are preparing themselves to be clergymcn.
Complaint was made on the other hand OF the
conduct OF many of these young men, in
"going 10 the thcatcr, balls, lOating and smok-
"i ing Mt street corners" and otherwise dopolt-
Ing themselves as do the ungodly. These
accusations were tartly denied by the guardians
OF the beneficiary candidates, who asserted that
a strict watch was kept on them, and " minute
"rcpOrts were made to the PrcsbyteIy of the
behavior of each Onc.'
This matter n, first sight appears to concern
only the Presbyterian body who give the
money. But the public are concerned as
much as any sect in the sincerity and yalde
OF mcn VINO assume the authority and respon-
sibility OF Christian teachers; so much con
ccrncd. indeed, that they are apt to test their
pretcnsiOns With, perhaps, undue rig0r; and
the question asked by every intelligent OBJ
server ia this case is, whether the very system
of gratuitous education may not have some
thing to do with the decentralization OF the
men Nothing can be more admirable in
theory than the help given by the Church to n
| l,,, ,-,t tp
life to his Masters service; nothing more
Liable to fail in practice. Human nature, Ger
tanly the nature Of a needy, ambitions Amer
lean lad, is the same, inside or out OF the pale
of any sect, and thc prospect of gratnitous,
| comfortable support for years, OF an education
| in academy, college, and theological seminary,
with tho assurance Of % settled income and
! established social rank after the education is
| finished, il strong temptation to un-
! worthy young men to enter tho profession.
! We DO not say that any of the 45S bene-
! GciqrcS of the Presbyterian Church are Un-
! worthy young men, or that any of them have
| taken I'D the work of preaching as a safe,
! eaav, and comfortable way Of earning living.
! We do not know nor wish to know the result
| OF the "miuntc watch or reports made Of their
"conduct.' We only say that they are men ha-
| hle to temptation like the rest OF us, and that
! for the worlds sake and Christ's sake the
searching inquiry of the Church which supports
! them should not begin at the facts OF their
dancing, smoking, or loafng, but at thcir mo-
! tiyes for taking up calling which moro than
| any other affects the world and tho work of
| Christ in it, II Is worth while to look into
| the cause of the present "lukewarmneSs of the
"Clmrch" in this especial charity. The Church
ia largely made up of shrewd, common-sense
men and women. They may have Il reason to
give for their feeble zeal.
| What the world needs just now in the Chris
! tian ministry is not simply scholars, littera-
| ,eurs, or theOlogians, but men on fire with the
message given them to dcliyer--men absolutely
constrained to their work by the love of Christ.
| Such men, however poor, will most probably
! urge their way into the ministry. unaided. If
| in this Church. as in many others, we hear at
/ times sermons which are mere literary efforts,
or find ministers living torpid, harmless, but
wholly unhclpful lives, thero is reason to sus-
pect that they found their way at first to the
benches in theological seminaIies as did cor
certain hearers OF old TO seats on the grass at
! Iesuss feet not for the sake of the Heavenly
| Word which was TO come to them, but for the
! loavc+ and fishes that were to follow. In any
case il were best not to put the lOayes and
| fishes within too easy reach.