Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1877-11-03
Alxan0rla 6azttte
SATURDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 8
Common Sense.

|
which was not touched by them The mass of
the average congregation was made up o! wrH
ingmen, women and young people, and they
often iouod the preacher talking over their
heads, intent only upon reaching the tall pop
pies of the field. 1t sometimes happened that
til, young preacher lost the sympathy Of his
congregation by ambitious attempts to dlsc lss
subtle questions above their comprehension.
Such a ono would discourse of the Oar
winian theory in congregation which Dtv,r
heard Of protoplasm, and preach on Christ.
mas day Of the philosophy OF the lucar
nation. Persons Of fair Intelligence had az
sured the speaker that they always became
confused when he bcgan to talk about the
subjectiYe and the otj ectvc. The Bishop spok,
of the tHed oil fresh supplies of books to coun
try clergyncn, that they might keep abreast Of
the age, and he advocated tho necessity for
good, fresh sermons. 10 villages and small
towns, because the people we're not capable OF
abstract reasoning and read but little, clergy
men should not think any sermon written late
on Saturday night was good coough for them.
The speaker corcuded with some practical ad
vice with respect to the preparation OF sermons
and deprecating the habit OF eXtemporancoua
preaching
Bishop Clark, CT Rhode Island, was the sec,
ond cssayist Many man was poor preacher.
he said, because he had poor listeners. The
| average intelligence Of congregations, however,
had improved Of latter years, and their didactic
essays and amplifcations OF dogmas which
served to satisfy the religious heart century
| ago would not meet the requirements Of church.
| goers now. Ii preacher would reach the
| times he must speak directly to the times Al
| the Fathers and tho apostles did. There
were things which Of necessity the world
ougr0ws, they might be timely in one age
and very superluous in another. Oeca
sionally preacher was seen trying to
galyapize into life the corpse of dead issues
about which nobody nowadays cares a j0t II
| the pulpit would take up boldly and vigorously
such great truths as the Saviour would be sure
| to preach if lie were on carth-truths which
| bear upon the welfare ofliving mcn-their wei
| fare here as we'll as hereafter, there would be
10 more mourning over empty pews. The peo
| pie had right to expect that the man who
| stands up in the pulpit to teach them should
| do some little thinking himself. 1t was easy
| to write such sermons aS many preached, but not
! SO easy to wlitc such al would take hold upon
the keen, iuquirug speculative spirit Of the
age. a preacher need not necessarily be a pro
| found thDker-n0t maDy iuen could be-bnt
| when he undertook to deal with the scientili.
questions Of the day he should know what he
was talking about. Unfortunately many did
not DO so, and their defence was much more in
uEio1as hant t3a 33Ffot apt atask
" style Of preaching, as distinguished from SOIL
senlimebtalism and gentle "Vle"s. Onc OF
! the preticst sermons to which the speaker hai
ever listened was from the text, 'Nothlrg out
Leaves" The text was rindloated by the
sermon. "L,y about with the Gospel hil''
brethrep," said the Bishop, ,'and separa'"
the wheat from the chatl, and then let the
strong winds of heaven blow away the
busks; thus shall you be able to make men
wise ID truth" Fairness 10 the pulpit he
] declared to be pre- cmincplly necessary II the
| Church would inllucncc the thought and thn
lif, Of the age-fairncss ii stating the POSITIONS
| of ANTAGONISTS aud in combating them. ihiA
1yas an earnest age, and even a5cpticS talked OF
sacred subj ects with an carncatnrss very ullicr
ent from the nippancy Of their brethren OF u
| century AGO. All that the pulpit needed TO
convert them was the deep, all pervadlng, all
controlling earncsness which came OF pr"
found intelligent conviction OF the truth OF
what it preached. ~ ru
Rev. MIR. Courtenay, of New York, followed.
He aualyzad and defined the phrase "modcrn
thought" and emphasized the necessity OF
eyery preacher being familiar with the latest
theories of scientific sceptIcs. When, tn"
nreacbcr said, he has the fear OF God before HIS
ewes. the love OF the souls OF the people IN ms
heart, and holds it a privilege to serve Christ
and tho highest privilege to bc one OF Ills min
;stc,ine servants, anI the basest mcanness 10
think about the scT'lc! OF se!i--then thc people
,u;l hear the puIIit and the lives Of the people
| shall be ust. r ;, =,
Hav, Noah II. Schcuck, Of Brooklyn, sai'i
,bn mower of the pul pit makes itself felt FIRST
unon the thought indirectly through the heart;
md then upon the life, indirectly through the
thonpht. Moses coming down from Mr.. Sina
nIo the midst OF the cpeopl1, st. John coming to
nreach rcpcntaner, Peter the Hermit preaching
The i,rusadcs and Luther preaching the ltelorm'
at;on. were cited as examples OF tho power
| ne the preacher when cXcrtcd directly upo,
| Tho lifo of tho &c oplo Tho pulpit had exercises!
az great power as tho pross upon the public
1 and had made its influence moro widely lelt ~
tho intellectual world. 1t had faon tothls parti
i cnlsr age TO have tho most fragrant Antagonist.
A of Tho nulpit that mad ever been known. and tho
limo had come for the pulpit to declare agains
4 thaso antseoni,ts When tho politician wh'
hesitstes not at the boldest assertions ot inhdoI
ia still welcomed TO christian homes and is scare"
l1 denied any PLATFORM; whcn in tho city "
Nv York tho most intelligent portion tl tn
. rn,nle will give their votes to d reputable can
didstns rather than have their party del ated
| vhen we sec WlckednesS IL HiRu pi'coo III w "''
;noton 20 unrobuked by tho world. and thos
,nso' nSo ara the criminals wolcomad to homo
as ssj if d they yavsl9 Ssd nS sst
JinniGe ei tradition Of our civilization, It, thoug
they had not scoed at every important e.Gmsn
- Of our society and ciyilivaz ltlon. Dr: ocnenG
2 would have the churc1 stretch out It's arms !
every every direction, and tsko direct lo;sons' mol
upon the world. :,,,,,,;f ,1, n,In
! :Sai a. oyert IN influence upon tho though {
,he limo it must place itself at the centre Of tn
thought The pulpit assumed Ut too 10 mqeh nannht IN a.
such men as Spencer ard Tyndall to be in o
4 nosi,ion TO itsef In 80 far as these men
dosvored to elevate humanity, tho church shou
T. 4 s,y to them, "God speed.'
Is tB CLEANSE TIE SYSTEM and purify c. g
u blood. QUIRKS IRISH TEA ,aasrbo %!ta GO Cons, o
A. and relieve Dyspepsia Sick 4 noSuae hS aorsngomo
ny Of tne Stomach or Liver Soa by yatns piuss's o.
twenty-five cents per package; S ;oh hiss ia q dos m