The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1882-02-01
For the Central Presbyterian.
History of a Church Debt.

/ III.
idea was received with reclamation. A
few old fogies opposed it, on the grounds
that the unhappy building committee,
which had been enticed to put up the
Original edlhce, were thousand dollars
out OF pocket by the failure of various
brethren to pay their subscriptions, and
that II there was any money to spare.
these confiding souls should be allowed
to see the end of their long trust. Also
they averred that a tall steeple put on
hat house which was of the brick
kiln order of architecture, would look
perfectly ridiculous Also that as we
had no bell, there was no need of putting
up place for one. And that Judging
by past experience if the congregation
got into debt, the congregation would not
pay out. Such were their contemptible
objections. The rest of us took the more
cheerful, we might say speculative view,
that the beauty of the spire would attract
every eye from the original edi6ce, Just
as no one looks at the peafowl when It's
tail Is spread, and that this structure,
like kind of moral loadstone, would
attract so many people to church that we
could pay for it directly. In fact it
would be tempting of providence to miss
such an opportunity So we voted the
old fogies down and the spire up terms
one-thlrd cash, paid by said old fogies;
6 balance secured by mortgage on building.
thus we started with a spire and debt
and prospect of great glory If any
church IS contemplating steeple on
credit, all we have to say is, Let them
try 1t. 1t amy one contends that church
debt is blessing in disguise, we can tes-
THY that the disguise is most effectual for
ours has been masquerading around us for
ten years, and we have never seen the
blessing of it yet. For when we came to
the simple facts of the case, we found it
was not that we got into debt but it was
the debt that got into us. 1t bestrode us
like wicked OH Sin bad man of the sea.
and almost choked what little of spiritual
life we had out of us. There was surely
never anything of its size which had such
capacity for preventing good and max
ing mischief. 1t was like lion in the
way, that scared us back from every be-
nevolent project. 1t was like a great
sledge-hammer that fattened out and
mashed up everything that was proposed,
IT 1T involved the expenditure of one cent.
1t was like boa constructor that wrapped
itself around every church project which
needed money and crushed 1t to its least
bones. 1t made our congregational meet
ings like those disorderly old Polish as
sembhes, where every man had the veto
power. No matter what was proposed
as useful or important, if any member
stood up and sSdd "debt," the thing was
dead. 1t was this only, that prevented
us from being the most liberal people in
the world. A spirit of universal benev-
olence came upon us. 1t would be Joy,
a privilege, to help every thing that came
along But the debt We even stopped
taking up collections for benevolent
causes, because of this. Several life in
surance agents were kind enough to pay
visits of many months in the aggregate,
to various families in the congregation,
paying board by giving private lectures
on policies, endowments, and premiums,
until the anxiety to get rid of them be-
came so intense that church meeting
was called to insure the life of old father
Bats, when it was hoped they would
leave. There was full attendance, every
body said it ought to be done, and it was
all butted" over, because some one said,
but the debt" From the same cause
we had to stop paying father Bats his
salary. Our hymn-book came to leaves,
and as we were unable to buy another
he had to give his hymns at random
This was the reason why, on thanksgiv-
ing day, he read out, "Lord what
wretched land is this" and after his
beautiful sermon on heaven, sang to the
surprise of everybody, clark from the
tombs. The Bible also was resolved
into its first elements, and sometimes
threw strangers, who did not understand
its infrmities, into sad confusion. Gen
esis was mixed with Romans, and Solo
mons songs with Jeremiah's lamenta-
tions. On Sunday morning a visiting
brother, with deep slow voice. began,
There was a man in the land of W
whose name was job And he had forty
sons and thirty nephews, that rode on
three score and ten ass colts" Just then
the deep base voice stopped, and the Wis
iting brother would have, to all appear
anoe, fallen back swooning into the arms
of father Bats, so amazed was he at the
increase Of Jobs family, if he had not
CHANGED to see Judges" on the second
Of the pages open before him. Every
one said it was shame church meet
ing was at once called, and we should
have got the money for new Bible, had