The Newtown bee., 1880-07-21


 tor of 4 church os more than 300 members pied your pleasant ;llld colninodious par sona5e which cost about S2, 900, but is now worth more than twice that amount proving our Savior's words Give and it shall be given No society or indi- vidual loses by generous act Mr. Fox like his predeeessor, Mir. Moore, was the Registrar of this Consociation his health unfortunately soon failed and he was dis mlssed he Is now pastor of q church ill New Jersey.
 This church therefore had three pastors during the six years of the .sCivil War ill striking contrast with the Revolutions ary period when it had one pastor for |, third of 6 century and until he died.
 Rev. Henry $. Smith w&s the next pas tor from 1867 to 1873. From here he re- moved to Greenfield Hill, thence to Staf- fordviile, Conn, and Is now living in South Amherst, Mass. He was faithful pastor and an earnest worker, especially ill the Sabbath school.
 IRE PRESENT pAsloRArE
 The present pastorate has teen the lon geSt this church has had in more than one hundred yeai s, (with two exceptions l Your minister preached his first sermon in this church jan. II, 1874. The previ- oussyear the interior of the church had been re-nodeled and 5eautified as you see it to-day, at an expense of S2. 5U0 Since then seventy have bean added to the church and S1 400 to the fund, (S50O being donated by Miss Sarah Blacknan. Of New Haven. a descendant of the first pastor. Rev. Thos. Tousey ] The debt rest ing Cll the society has been paid we are at peace among ourselves; this church 1 am assured, numerically and financially, is now more prosper ous than at any time for century past. And yet it never need ed tEe help of all it's members and friends more than now. If this help is given this church may recover what it has lost ana be in generations to come what it was in Coioniai times before the war for our liberty drained 1t of its resources and members. If so, we will be thankful; if not, we will be hopeful and still do our work. For tliiS church has work to do I; it is a Free Union Church" where all who love our Lord and cherish a hope of immortality and heaven may have d home; where an evangelical gospel shall be preached but each one be permitted and expected to think for himself "We preach as those who must give an ac- count" but we judge not that we be not judged" God IS the judge of ali. Our motto is: ''In essentials, unity: in non-essentials, liberty in all things, char ity." Brethren and friends, if ali you who are. or ought to be interested in the welfare Of this church, do your whole du- ty it's future is assured. Such Is the past and present of this church; the Past has told it's story.
 CONCLUSION.
 One hundred years from now the pas tor of this church (who will he be9 will doubtless prepare a centennial sermon .inilar to this end to him we will com init the record. What will that record be? What will be the future of this na- tion, this town and of this church? Will the changes of the future be as great as those of the past? Who will comprise this audience one hundred years hence? Wheu the congregation is dismissed on that day and the people go to their homes how will this street and village look to them? What will be the religious sen timent of the place and day? Will the immortal soul then be estimated at its true value? We cannot answer these questions; they belong to the future aid to the future we leave them. We have performed our task; we have (as directed in the text asked questions only of the Days that are Past and we have recorded the answers. And now tdreareU 10 the Pdst. We break the connec- tion agaiE-we busy ourselves with the preaent-we leave the future with God praying that he will bless this ancient loved town, with it's church. es, and schools, and interests this illus triouS oOmmonwealth--tniS great nation and trusting that when another century has rolled by, and we for many years have slept with our fathers, church, and town, and state, and nation may ne strong CT, and Purer, and better tLan lor'.