, 1877-10-28
THE RELIGION or ADJUSTMENTS.

| AscenclSm alS not n0nr1Sheu II Amef1c
j.. either because the soil has been too rich
the climate too invigorating. It is to
- wondered at that the gospel Of self-tlenial hi
. not been more widely embraced here, for tt
degree of remuneration required by it is le
:, in proportion to the temptations, and IL
= temptations arc less in new communities tha
in old ones. There has been, it is true, son
= assaults upon nmusemcnts for their ow
: sake. We have known the Puritan Sabbat
in all its formal austerity; ana there has nc
been one kind of innocent enjoyment whic
has not excited the concern of some godl
. people. But there has been comparativel
little exhibition of d malevo1ent and sourc
disposition in the crusades against the goot
spirits Of our people. The crusaders lay
been conscientious, and often rational il
their methods. They have proceeded some
times by appeals to the sensibilities Of thos
they seek to improve, not by threats of pun
ishment and the .terrors Of the Inv. The or
dinary method in the older countries is dif
ferent. Authority is exercised by STATE
clergymen to maintain the dignity and the
traditions Of the Church and the great end:
Of the Church are often lost sight of in the
pursuit Of its temporal glory. This is true
Of the English Church as much rs of any
other. In the rural communities of En-.
gland the interference Of the clergy with
the amusements of their parishioners pro-
duces almost an abridgmeut Of their per
sona1 liberties; and, although tho authority
of the clergy is derived mainly from the So
cred character of their calling, apart from
their own qualifications to judge Of such
matters, it is not on TINT account less
weighty with the masses.
Within a generation there has been q
strong reaction in England against fabby
Christianity. CHARLES KINGSLEY was per-
haps the first to advocate d change in the
physical development Of the Church. He
taught the doctrine of Muscular Christianity,
aud enforced his teaching to such degree
by example that ho wrought u marvellous
effect. Ho made amusement not only
privilege but duty, aud removed from
nearly every form of human activity the
seal OF condemnation fixed upon it by pre-
yious generation. The good that KINGSLEY
did, it is pleasure to observe, lives after
him. He has left disciples to carry on and
magnify his work. Their voices were he ard
in the great Church Congress at Croydon
early this month when the question of s'Pub-
lie Amusements" came up for discussion. The
essayist of the occasion exhibited the usunl
reverence for decnying Asceticism, and
found ample support in the conservative
sense of the Congress. The Rev. F. Coz
said it was not the business Of the clergy to !
cater for the amusement Of their pnrishion- |
ers. In bis opinion, any form Of amuse-
ment that indisposed Christian to engage
IN dcvotions afterwards was questionable !
He advocated the home-circle md the ill.,
hnence Of pious parents rs remedies for the
want Of entertainment complained Of. This /
familiar platltudo brought up the Rey. j. W.
HoEs1Er, who seems to be an excellent type
of the modern, sef-roliant, well-balanced,
Christian. Ho said:
The people OF the Church would be, must he,
and should be amused; and it was the dnty Of the
Church to orcguatc, not to ignore or condemn, their
deeds. Divincs OF 4 former generation considered
an atmosphere Of refined anl gentle melancholy
lhe proper tone for nortls, but the Clergy of the
present day cared not to persuade nlen that the |
source OF joy was in their hearts py hanging nut
The sign Of the Prince OF Darkness in their faces;
Ind for their poorer brethren at least they might
be allowed to think that they had better be sung to
han eroaned over. {Applause aud laughter. I
1oHS BuSrAS spoke with regret of the Young |
woman whose name was DuLL-how prolific she ]
vas and how rarely her descendants had cmigrat-
u from England. i'GneR1 ct circe1ses was a hui
nan, and nota purely pagan CIV. The Church had
earned that there religion Of health: il must
lso learn that there was q religion OF amusement,
nd that the calling of au amuser sacred call
ne. (Applausc.1
The Religion Of Amusements is barely sug- {
asted by N1r. HoEs1EY, who, indeed, had l
ot the desire to expand it into a system. ! t
lis main iden is that religion ccn work {
facicntly through Tie everyday life of the t
eorle. He would have nothing sanctimoni- S
us about it. Recognizing as {. part of tho t
uman constitution the universal desire for c
ntertainment. he awards it place among a
10 works Of Cop. As such it is to be re- Il
,ected and cultivated 1t is too Important
part Of man to be neglected. Mr.. Hons d
ET would probably consent to advance d
ep farther aud say TINT the existence of is
~ form Of amusement is prima 11cie N
'idencc in its favor Pernicious influence 81
ust not be assumed but proved. In the al
so OF the theatre, for instance, the nra- e,
|mption is that, since it is an historical in. fc
tuition, dating its origin back hundreds of ST
mrs, it has basis in sound sense and GOOD Ill
orals. Tho deterioration Of the thectro Ia
res not require the conclusion tin! it has so
rvived its usefulness. There may bo n Of
lder remedy than fire for the evils it prop B'
ates. atr, Hons1Er holds it to bc the lutr al
the Church to reform and purify the staeo tn
her tllnn to condemn it. The Richard ITI al
1E71Sa spoke to his mind and t,,e to
p tHn 1Finhlt of JEFFERSON to "t
soul, in n way that could not easily he Gu
gotten. What is true Of the theatre is hi{
% in an equal degree of m1,sic-haIls md TO,
other forms Of amusement. Hardly ono sui
them but is susceptible of such reform mn
It 1t can bc made the ally Of true religion kes
len this subject is taken hold of in tho wo
ut manner, the clergy will find That they rel
70 brought themselves near to The hearts the
the people. If the man who makes lila not
lads Of a nation can afford to despise thu dor
who makes the laws, how much more pla