The New York herald., 1877-10-20
PRESS AND PULPIT.
Relations of the Secular
Journals to Religion.
SUNDAY SERMONS IN PRINT.
What the Rev. 7. Dewitt Talmage Thinks
Of Newspaper Tracts.

\. Tamags ectured last night s'The Relations Of
tho Secular Newspaper and the Pulpit" Among the
recent events. said he, is the assault made BY por
ton OF the religious the secular press, because
Of the Monday publication OF sermons. The work s
trivial and useless and having the nature
OF religious carica,urs open my Monday morning
ana Monday evening papers and find great prominence
gwen 10 the pulpit uterances OF the previous day. One
paper gives six columns of sermons another three and
anothert two; many Of them two columns Later
In the week como into reading the Chicago,
Cincinnati, Baltimore, Phladelphia and Boston news
papers Of tho previous Monday giving from six
columns Of religious utterances. sermonic pubca-
ton In secular newspapers is OF the character
issics Of tho day. which will leave its effect veal or
WOO over great multitude. II high time tnat the
Church OF Christ wake up she vehement denucia-
ton OF this practice the cheerful undsgused
approval oft
The habit OF sermouic reporting In secular nowspa.
pcrs began in this wise There accounts Of ded
icaon SERVICES and instalments which only occupied
halt column; then came sketches OF Churches and
ministers people attending certain servicss but
In May, 1856. tho NEW YoRx HgRALD began the sys-
tenatic sunday reporting which has now become the
feature In oil our American cities.
TIE PRESS 4 DISTRIBUTOR.
lay down capable OF proof the proposition that
Its sermenio publication moro for tho perfection OF
society and the redemption OF the world than all the
societies and societies Of the country
put together 1t Is generally admitted that each paper
has at least five readers--each copy, mean.
It s within bounds to say that the Monday
morning and evening papers OF our cltics
put into the hands OF this nation 10000, 900 reg-
ious tracts 100000 discourses OF God Of the
soul. OF the Eternal Word; TO- 900 attacks upon
inquity; 10000 600 defenccs OF the truth. What
stupcndous achievement which yet to have its first
public acknowledgment on :he part Of the Church OF
God. unless my remarks to-n night be taken as ac-
acknowledgement Sometimes ecclesiastical courts pass
resolutions commendatory Of some sectarian organ
made Of scissors and gum arabic, with circulation OF
S,OO0 but where is the ecclesiastical recognition Of
these 10000, 600 utterances OF every Monday, which,
during the course oil year, multplied by nfty Two,
become 800 600, 900 utterances. II Is beyond all hu
mao calculation or human Imagination. The very OBJ
lection made 10 u Is the argument in favor OF such
publication. II 10 said that this newspaper habit
mixes worldly business and religion. one column
OF sermons, tho of monetary report; column
OF argument on immortality tho next on horse race;
next miserable &vorce case My friends what we
most noed is more mixing up Of religion and business
Il Morton had mixed more religion and less water in
Impoverished people: What VIII cure TINS
epidemic OF fraud, failures and iorgeries
Only ono thing-Religion. on, you say the chief
persons connected with these frauds mcmbcrs OF
Churches, ucaCOnS, Superlntonuout9
schools. vcstrymcn. Yes, but they stood their reg
ION place and their business In another place
Thcy ought TO have mixed them. II Is not religion
standing on the spire OF Trinity Church, at the head
OF Wall street, that will send the right kind Of
life through tnat human artery OF American
finance, but religion starting from that ecclesi-
astical pio, walking down side of Wall
tho Jerry tnen turning around and going back the
other side or Trinity Church. IL not religion stand
ing altar OF Grace Church At tho head OF Broad
way. that Is going 70 save our cities or improve It's
business ethics but It is religion starting IRON Grace
dntvu Rrna uvav eha ffcrv
anu then turning round and walking back the other
side 10 Grace Church.
MIXING RELIGION AND Busixxss
DO the Monday morning and Monday evening papers
OF Now York and Brooklyn mix religion aud business?
ton thousand women and men n New York I cs.y this
yearY Because they mix religion with their business.
We must explode IN this country tho idea that man is
Christian who on Sunday sings like an angel aud
ind the counter Of Brown Brothers 4 Co.
and merchants, aud on tire tables OF all our best
hotclss You say IL Is the secular newspaper No;
distributor, with tho ribbon around her beautiful
tracts, come into this Office on Monday aud she will
not s we arc %
IN the shape Of the secular newspaper but they
pay for them Las. Monday there were sermons on
tor Chicago and Philadelphia. Strange that the reli-
gious bats can't III The merchant may have
only the text; but text saved Martin Luther and
Que text saved Jonathan Edwards, and viii nud you
hundred texts any one o. which Will save the world
II give II ull swing. Toward night tho business
says, swell, believe wi go home, before
he starts he picks up his daily newspaper and puts
his pocket IL Is irll Of religious discussion. Hc
has idea he Is tract distributor, he goes homo and
lays his paper on the drawing room table His wife
and his children read IL after family have
retired at night the paper goes into tho gitchen and
the servants road H. Tomorrow mording is neces-
sary to tic up bundle OF Kind, and the bundle
is wrapped up IN this newspaper and handed to the
errand boy. Carrying this newspaper the steps
Of the car bis eye catches portion Of this
sermon lhe man who takes the bundle
ant hto Van fat In th.tn
chants mechanics anu Bankers are all being turned
into tract distributors But you Insist that In
coherent that side by side with that which bad,
the gospel should 20. give tho Gospel aud
sin fair light, and the Gospel Will come out ahead.
SIN Is an ola bag, ana gets Out OF breath, while
righteousness has strong lungs and swarthy arm, and
the step Of the morning coming out OF the blue sky
put column OF Gospel In any newspaper against
column oi SIN With tho poison send the antidota
Ono oil these secular papers during the past year
gwen an average Of ono column OF religious news per
day. This Is truo by actoai counl-more by actual
count than some religious newspapers have during
the same period. Besides that this pIau gives two
Sundays 10 every week. What choice have we with
SIX secular days massed IL battle agains, sacred
days
BENEFICIAL CRITICISM or sxRMoxs
The odds are cariuly against us, but through tho
Monday secular papers Of The worlds days sur
renders and comes over 10 US. Instead OF one to
have two days 10 i've Besides that this plan helps
TO make ministers moro honest IN their prcDarutiou
Of sermons Plagiarism will cease In the pulpit. IL
- as dishonest to steal sermon as to steal ham.
There IS not so much plagiarism IN the pulpit
now as there was fifteen, twenty. thirty years
ago, when oiton II wus the bust
ness OF the Church courts Of the different
ecclesiastical organizations try for this
reporter OF New York paper told that clergy
man inslsod that he should not publish his sermon
on tho following day. He put II upon the ground OF
modcsty but the fact out after while that the
sermon was piagiarized Il Is not safe now to take
q sermon iron Jeremy Taylor, lor, on Monday night
somebody Will take that same sermon down from the
! library A man who took hts sermon IRON religious
| patchwork was confronted BY u man in the front
] pow who had more education aud less polite
moss than he. The minister gave Ono
| ton" The minister then took extract from some
ono else, and the SAID, ''rhat s jeremy lay or. -
BY this time the minister pretty red the lace,
but no Kept on and gavo beautiful extract from John
Wesley. Said the man, "rhat Is John Wesley" The
minister lost hts patience and said. "Shnt up, yvu
| fool" SAID tnc man, "Inat Is your own.' Besides
| that this plan keeps ministers from beng
dull. The minister who consents TO be
dull makes tho people tnke the dose sunday, but
on Mondays the papers make him take his own mcdi-
cine. You complain that the reports do not do you
justice The probability that " they do not pick up
anything worth reporting there nothing 10 pick up.
4 n nj faaaa .tuf da nd NM