Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-07-30
FAREWELL SERVICES.
CLOSING OF TWENTY YEARS PAsToRATE
OF REV. DR.. DWIEELL.
Immense Audience from the Entire City
The other Churches Closed, and 81
Congregations Join.

The farewell services, closing the twenty
years passionate of Rev. DR.. l. E. Dwinell
D. D., IN this city, took place at the Con
gregational Church last evening, and was ont
of the largest gatherings ever held here in s
church, upon any occasion. All the Other
churches were closed, and the several pastori
were present, and participated in conducting
the services The foral decorations of the
desk and platform were exceedingly choice anc
profuse, presenting the appearance Of rich
bank of rarest flowers, beautifully arranged
behind which the speaker, the retiring pas
tor, stood in the center, with tho pastors Of
the other churches at the rear of the plat
form, forming a semicircle extending from
side to side. All the aislea and vacant spaces
throughout the auditorium and galleries wers
closely seated With chairs and occupied
many remained standing in the approached
while others went away, unable to gain ad
mission. The services opened with volun
tsry by the choir, 80 come. Lst Us Sing
with TITO response, '1i Prego, o Padre ,
Il was followed byresdiag the hymn "NeArer
My God, to Thee" by Rev Mr.. Feathers5uu
sung by the audience; Scripture reading by
Rev DIR. Frost; prayer By Rev. a. II. Rice
after which DIR. Dwieell delivered his fare.
well sermon, as follows
THE TWENTY YEARS Passionate.
Acts xxi, 1914: "Aud when we heard these
things, both We and they of that place besought
him not to 20 up to Jerusalem. Then Paul an.
swered, What mean We to weep and to break mine
heart? fer am ready not to be bound only. but
also TO die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord
Jesus And when he would not be persuaded, we
ceased, saying Toe will Of the Lord be done"
The Apostle Paul was Of Herve--a strong
nature. He could endure mobs and prosecutions,
being stoned and beaten; but he broke down under
expressions Of human tenderness and sympathy.
There is no Apostle Paul about to leave you. The
one who Is going is not knowingly going dan
gerous mission having obvious peril5 huGg over
with additional supernatural portents and divine
warnings in advance. There IS no hero martyr in
your presence whom you about dismissing to On.
other mysterious act Of q thrilling tragedy Of which
he is the principal actor This IS simply the parting
OF family-some Of the members Of the happy
family, long connected and active with it, going
away. Yet l have thought that it would be par
| donable presumption to take this account OF the
| remarkable parting Of the Apostle Paul with the
disciples al Cesarea to hint and outline several re-
marks that appropriate to our condition and cir
cumstauCes.
Using the text, then, simply as suggestive to us,
the first Thing which it presents as applicable to our
relations Is the tenderness and sacredness OF the
! pastor4te. The text reveals the deep and tender
feeling which existed between the Apostle aud
those to whom he had ministered in the Gospel a
similar feeling usually exists between those who
have been brought together in any high and helpful
| way in the experiences of c pasterate. II they
have walked together upon the nights Of God; II
they have seen together the same blessed truths,
and their hearts have beat together in the d-
vine joys they have bond of lasting interest be-
| tween them. pastor naturally grows into the
hearts OF his people, and the people grow into the
| heart OF the pastor.
bouh ea1 -
over this long period and see with what varied and
deep interests it has been intertwined. Twice this
period would take you back to the second year after
Suffer first drove his tentstakes in the virgin soil OF
Sacramento and ninety four times even TO the birth Of
Christ Yet this long passionate has been passed amid
scenes OF intense activity, interninglng as moral
power with them. 1t began during the local de-
preston caused by the flood the year before asid
at the very time when the dark clouds Of smoke
from the battle OF Gettysburg were rolling over the
whole land. During it, with the exception Of the
Folsom road, all the railroads OF the State and the
connecting lines have been built, with Sacramento
at first their matriX, and Still the geographical
and constructive radiating center The population
| Of the city has doubled, the quality OF the build
ings improved three-fold, the assessment Of prop
erty increased from s5,929,84O to sl2,O0o,000
nearly. The streets have been graded, the side
walks perfected, the publ and private grounds
beautied, the trees lining the Streets have grown
converting the streets to shady avenues aud, with
the shubbery and fower5in the yards giving the
| city the appearance OF picturesque and in
habited garden.
During ts time this past crate has twined with the
other pastorates OF this city il and Sbout the life Of
Sacramento as different vines may wind IN graceful
| symmetry in and about the same treetops, though
this alone has ss continuous vine through the
whole period. The following names viii suggest
| the other pastorates with which il has most CO.
| operated in efforts for baautfying the city with
moral and spiritual life: SiXth-street Methodist
Peck, Briggs, Wythe, Ross, Heacock, Hough,
Briggs again, Benty, uunn Presby terrain
Phelps, Mcdonald, Nash, Scheling, Mccoy, Rice ;
| First BaPtst-Charlton, Taylor, F skett, Cole,
Frost; Episcopal-Hil Bonte, Ward Davis; Sew
! Pratt, Fields, Chamberlain, Rankin, Anderson,
| Feaiherstun; Kingsley Chapel-Urmy, Newton,
| Gober, Trefren, Wells, Wicks, DEL, Mckelvie !;
Calvary Baptist-Ludow, PaTshall, Reid, Gregory
Henry United Brethren Organized, like the last,
| since 1 to the city - Becker, Hart,
| Becker again, Dr.. Membrun. There have
| been worthy psstorates of other churches,
which will not detain you to name. Altogether
! this is u succession Of men Of which, in the main,
for Christian worth rad ability the city or any other
community might well be proud and the last
! days ars not worse thai the former And
this pastorate has beeh passed in peace
! and harmony and love with them all.
All this while changes have been going on in
the homes alse with which this ministry has been
I most identified. stream Of immOrtals has been
coming into them, stream Of immortais going out;
and between the two points, the entrance ana exit
there has besu all the throbbing interest and ex-
citement and anxiety Of life in ieyersh age and
| new business problems, aud social problems and
| civil problems.
And when you look further over into the spiritual
history Of these individuals You viii fad that won
derful processes have been going on In the course
Of these twenty yeSrs principles have had time to
ripsn. The young man who twenty years ago began
on principle OF seif-indulgence has in this time
through the successive stages, first Of indul-
gent, then free, then a fast, then a scottish, and
finally ruined life, and is already, very likely, in
the grave. The youth who started at that time
without lsoEal purpose or integrity, determincd TO
take advantage Of the sly chances to help himself
long since became an object Of general suspicion,
lost one after another his Places and finally hia
character, and now finds position only where there
is nothing to steal aud need OF being watched, or
where he has an Official watch set over him The
Young who set out determined to be true, and
do his duty, TO day Is the that every person
trusts and honors, and who stands at the front
And the Christian, who twenty yea ago tried to
get along with little religion and has continued TO
act in that lne is the one who has been plunged in
doubts had 70 spiritual comfort, been captured by
the world, and whose pietY no one respects; while
the e who has been always in his place in the
church and done his duty has been the growing,
ripeniug, rejoicing and honored disciple. During
this period havese the different moral principles
on which individuals have 6cted-prIneiple5 obscure
and hardly dstinguishable al first-come out
and stamp themselves yisbly in their respective
characters, leaving them far apart-men and wo-
men, on the one hand, at the head of society, in
everything relating to moral worth, and men and
women, on the other at the bottom. During all
| this time also | have witnessed mighty conflict
Of doctrines and systems going on in the commit
nifty / have seen all the faiths and non faiths,
spirItuslisns aud materialsms, sensualsns and
stoicisms of the age, which Claim to be able to help
man and solve the problem Of life, struggling to-
gether and trying to win the acceptance OF this
people. And these twenty years have shown the
utter impotency Of many Of these systems to raise
the plane OF character satisfy the iongngs of the
soul. These Yeas have tested science, the public
school, the press, materialism, spiEtuaisn free re-
ligon no religion, inf ieity and proved that none
OF these alone short Of the spirit and genius Of
Christianity borrowed By them can ennoDe char
acter or satisfy the soul. Whjl3 at the sane tins
these years have demonstrated tue peerless value o.
the ever living gospel for these purposes. Thos'
systems have utterly failed to take hold Of the con-
science and heart of the people, and produce right
eousnoss aud love This / have seen regeneratinl
ing and purifying society, and sending it, beneleeu
influence ia pulses Of moral and humane quickeninG
far beyond the bounds Of IFS saving poser.
Now in the midst Of this swift, hillowy turbit
stream OF Hfe-material, personal socia-thls paste
rate his been passed as moral power. Il has no
aimed to be light erected on the bank OF the life
stream throwing distant and cold rays upon 1t, bu
moral iuhuence in it. sharing its incidents and ex
p3Tenees, with the one object IN YieW-to Apply th
gospel 70 practical issues and TO flash INTO It Til
light OF God. Il has been its ain-its sole Rinl-tt
help this people to come into true relations witt
their Savior and connect their lives properly viii
Gsd The aim has been to touch you and help Yol
religiously % the up ler side OF your being, with
| touch that God hon0rs-the touch Of Got-tha
would 60 through you and help you all the va,
through and thence out even 70 your secular an'
bodily interests.
In doing this work have met you in the mos