The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1883-01-04

Why Certain Ministers Fail 10 "0et ~
Their Congregation.
From tho New York Tribune.l

why Certain Ministers Fail 10 "Ost AZ
Their Congregations.
from thu New York Tribunel
Tho number of churches throughont
tho country TINT aro invariably full. not
to aay crowded, on each recurring Sun.
lny II not large. We doubt II II reaches
one-qnarter Of ono per cent. Of tho ag.
gregate. The majority of churches aro
never moro than two.tlirtls full. A great
many are never more than third full.
Not few are uniformity M "sparsely
settled M a very now country.
Various explanations have bccn sug.
gestcl to account for this state of things.
all of which are plausible. But II 90
ours to us than one Of these upon which
no unusual stress has ever been laid II
worthy Of tho serious consideration Of
the ministry. We mean the cxplana-
tion which refers tho smallness of tho
average attendance upon church-scr-
entirely read or are preached from moro
or less copious notes. Tho lawyer nd.
dressing a jury, politician on the
stump. arc not confined to notes; Why
should minister's be-? Ii not tho method
employed by lawyers and stump-speak-
crs better calculated TO engage and hold
attention. Obviously No. II IL q hu-
man instinct to believe that when man
il earnest, when the message no has 10
deliver comes from his heart as we'll as
from his head. he will find any hut the
most casual and infrequent reference TO
o manuscript impossible, since he re-
nj hat al 1AS.N 1es1
by breaking the chain Of attention that
connects the pulpit and tho pew.
A well-known lawyer once said to
friend: "When l was young in the pro-
fession was assigned to tho defence Of
man who was indicted for murder.
When came osum up. being profound
" impressed with the Importance to my
client Of what / had to submit to tho
jury, departed from custom and read
carefully prepared speech. No sooner
had / done SO than l regretted that l
had not thrown aside my notes. found
that l could not get at tho jury"
Scores Of ministers are constantly com.
planning that they cannot get At" their
congregations. They are not ministers
who are independent Of their manu-.
scripts. Show us minister who is
reckoned the most successful and wc
will show yon ono who breaches with
ont notes. There Is much sense in the
eulogium passed upon popular divine
by an old hunter. Il like him. said
Nimrod, "because he shoots without q
rest"
The preaching that is philosorhic. re-
Elective, metaphysical, possibly without
serious disadvantage may hc done from
the closely followed written page. So,
too, may that preaching he which il to
interest 4 cultivated audience a. a fine
lecture would. But the preaching which
is calculated 10 arouse and quicken
must follow not that method nor vet the
extcmporaneous method, which, except
in rare instances, has its outcome in
loose and inconsecutive thought. hut q
method which leaves the preacher as
free to come into personal, persuasive
relations with his hearers as il he were
lawyer or q stnmp-speakcr. We arc
aware that some ministers say that they
cannot trust themselves to ret up in
their pulpits without firm reliance on
their notes. The Implication of course
preach with notes than not preach at
all. But il is question whether poor
preaching. preaching that does not take
hold. is not worse than no preaching.
No man would feel that he had a call to
be inry.lawyer who found that he
could not "shoot without a rest" in
court. Why should man with similar
limitations feel that lie has call to all
dress for his fellows in relation to mat.
ters Of the first importance? A few
weeks ago minister in neighl,oring
city who breaches to more empty than
occupied pews. took for the subject of
his discourse the decline Of religion.
He proved the decline by reference to q
mass Of suggestive statistics and con-
clnded hy nm earnest appeal to his hear
ers to join him in surplieauon to tho
throne Of grace for a revival. The mat
ter Of the sermon was excellent, hut the
manner? From first to last the speaker
was closely confined To his notes. and
the urgent appeal with which he con-
cluded was shorn Of nearly all its force
since il came from the lips af man not
leaning toward his hearers, hut bending
over his desk: not looking into the eyes
Of those whom he desired t. touch, hut
upon the printed page. Tho sermon
ought to have produced deep impres.
sion. Apparently II produced none,
| There was no magnetism in ii.
A poet of the iloril school was once
criticized as having nothing to say hut
saying it magni.icieatly. The trouble
with 50 many ministers is that they
have much to say Int they say it With
distressing effect. Ii public senti-