Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1883-02-11
,xr FOE THE PREACaERs.
,..,ine in Church Attendance
rrs, the Posi- -ISTELLIoENcER.I

DAsll0e AZ
Fer the p0s1 -IsrrrrI'rs'fn-I
can have spent ten years in
No on' of New England without seeing
bis pa alarming change is taking
thf o. this region in regard to tho
Place " attending Sabbath worship.
pstteI r. connecticut valley, and to the
ID tn'ss Il in almost every community
ssf o. - Tsonnd scores and even hun
naJ neople who a few years ago
drsds acrisr y. attendants upon the
sec :. hnt have now dropped the prac-
s5urcI,,, cI,,,ocetber. In Northfeld, only
6es sn"u,,s drive from the residences
sbsn Io I"osIabrated Mr.. Moody, is set
d ino called "The Farms" Here are
tlsse;.. ;.atsIIioent, well-to-do families. in
~ Esa.n.iful homes, and near the sanctn-
psut @. vet. good authority assures me
-, -, there are only nine families where
nss ns;asIs member is found at church.
ssIhs Tlsn the Congregationalist Church
tl average attendance OF about
~ esu now n it has less than l5o.
~ ~ touns are sinking down into
Msan;sm. Mnn so far as Sabbath worship
hsaucsrnpd. Men often pay we'll to
rt r.,ort uresch;ng and are friendly to
e...r,or. but are never seen in the
We nf God. Meanwhile their chill
.ou1 drifting still further from the
a'sI ." of ths church. Every year the
nssN nsor.;on of church gOers IL growing
wb;le Sabbath desecr4tion is fear
Ns. F ;ncreasinp. Already the natural
r.,.s r NJ this general neglect of Gods
TO-. "a shown in such IA startling record
ss.,;ue in these country towns the last
o. years. IA We do not believe can be
muslsa in any other region of such ex-
~. s and reputation in tho Union. Muir
ssr ;. has followed murder and outrage
.mcceeded outrage, IN these rural towns,
ontiI .L, Springfield RepHtlican fitly
asks the question, what is Western
massachusetts, coming TO ~ Several
tbinos may have combined to cause
.tis decline of church attendance.
Hundreds of godly men and women
Iere attribute it III n great measure to
,Ls Giving up of the afternoon service.
Pnt whatever may be the cause, the in
eraasipg deslne of church attendance
IN Western Massachusetts is most Sad
dsninR.
The above is from the Congregational
ia, "a religious Boston paper. 1t was
written hy pastor there. and ls replied
totvs lawyer here as follows:
The article states rather alarming
facts. results and some of the causes
that produced those results. The
writer is n clergyman who mourns the
facts. probably because there are now
fever souls saved and less money in
the pockets of the preachers than for
merIy. His picture of things IL none
100 bad. though he handles the cause
TOO teuderly. Vast masses If people i'll
the United States have no clear cOncep-
ion of God or religion, and on this
Coast there are scores of young men
mared with religious instruction. who
have become infidels. And when the
masses lose faith in, and respect for
truth honor and religion, the very
foundations of our Government are
bsinQ undermined.
Tue blame tor this state of things in
Massachusetts, lies almost wholly with
The clerpymen themselves. Lots of tho
minister's are frauds and humbugs-
p;ous frauds and consciencious hum
bug-who think that they are serving
The Lord, when really they are doing
nothing of the sort. In the first place.
there are many ministers who should
never be preachers. They arc not adapt
cd by nature or training to the work,
and they make muddle of it. Lot me
Illustrate: have two farms to let. A.
and b. each take one OF these farms ION
shares" There is no cnOice between
them. Four years pass. The farm that
A. had ia impoverished and skinned"
fences down, bitches choked, buildings
going to ruin. and land exhausted from
want of fertilizers. till tho farm pro-
duces half the amount raised when A.
took it. B. on the other farm has every
thing thrifty and neat; buildings. fences
and drains III good repair, improve
ments made, fertilizers saved aud so
wisely used that the farm produces
nearly double the amount raised whom
B. took it. Which man is fit to run n
farm2 Which man is no farmer. and |
should never have farm entrusted to his |
care? Take A. and B. and dress them |
In broadcloth and white neckties and |
give them two average parishes. Four |
years pass Rev. A., the pastor OF one |
church, has his flock like cats and dogs |
tied together; some Of the church men,
bers, disguised. mistreafed and sadden- |
Cd, have left, while new ones have join |
ID who are IN injury to any cause with |
which they associate themselves. The
church, ne ,rly empty on Sunday, shows
the corporation has no dividends and |
cannot raise the assessments" Rev. B. |
IN the other church is loved and trusted
BY all; hs has the church free from |
debt and old sores; the church members
work together for God and humanity.
The good morals of the people and
crowded house on Sunday show that |
apood has been done that God alone |
can measure. Which of these men does |
good? Which does evil2 Which is the
nan ft 70 preach in good old Massa
ehusetts? And which is fraud that
eheuld be sent here to compete with |
VAinamen cutting cord wood? The |
oasee OF A. and b may be extreme, but
thev are real. and We can name the men |
and parishes. Now. after A. has run ono
Or two churches into the ground, and
nn the parishes in row, perhaps kick
q from them, il he keeps on in other
cnurcheH Is he not scamp! What do
you call 1t when man persists in doing
. Known wrong2 II minister is fired
oct OF a church in one place for bad
Sonduct, dishonesty, hugping some OF
!ne sisters. etc.. he should be SO marked
wat he oanrot bs the pastor Of sanother
uock anywhere. there should be such |
Perfect organization of clergymen. in
ending theological seminaries, that
soch men would not be permitted to
preach, and when found out after they |
eAvs started, they should be stopped
forever, before untold evii Is done.
seven years ago We knew several
narrow minded. selfish, seotistical
ynung men from the lower walks OF |
II' who began to study for the MINIS
Wy. The course they took (several |
ysan Of hard study of Latin, Greek,
.aneology and solemn slush) WAS just
We kind to give them tho dyspepsia.
snd dssrive them of the three great
,equxites for work. viz: vigor. know
sage OF human nnture. and common
ense. or a familiar ity with the cou,msn
matters of business life. Did these
Young men so forth with breadth of
nind to mould public q ntiment; to fill
s0elr chnr ,hes by eloquent Thought, to
gomprehend error and subdue il, to un-
uetstand the cases, struggles and for-
sows OF their people SO as TO sympathize
\, vitn them and lead them to heaven?
MOI much. We think they are like Rev.
= =. undoinR the work good men have
'a1ofed Years to accomplish.
n ....I n