The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1883-06-05
A BOMBS HE'LL.
Church Circles Much Exer.
cised Over an Anonymous
Pamphlet.
The Paid Church Choir System
Violently Attacked and De-
nOunced.
The Terribie Charge Preferred
Against a ST. Louis Minister.

Against a ST. Louis Minister.
The st. Louis Post-Dispatch of
Nav 26th contains the following
lengthy article, which will certainly
prove of interest to the readers of the
BAzoo:
A pamphlet of over one hundred
pages, enti.lod, "The Choir System
Sell: Condemned" has been circulating
among church people for the last day
or two, and has caused considerable
excitement. The book is very un-
pretentious, is bound 10 COMMON
yellow paper, but part of it contains
pieces of sarcasm and story or two
about prominent ministers, which
make very interesting reading. The
author carefully ccnceals his name.
but he writes like man who is well
posted In everything except the rules
of English grammar, some of the SEN
fences being fearfully and wonderfully
made. In the preface it is stated
that the book is written to kill of
the paid choir system which sis a
scathing and blighting curse in every
sense of the word to true religious
principles" that some ministers
would refuse to preach in church
where the abominatiOn was tolerated,
and that there is only one minister
in the city who heartily indorses the
system, and that he is a man who
neglected to go to see lady member
of bis church in needy circumstances,
whose husband was al the point of
death, in a distant state without
hopes of recover, after having been
notified of the facts several times I"
The first argument is that the church
has no right to pay wicked or un-
converted terson to become leader
in the worship of God. The heading
of the first chapter reads /: "Irreligi-
Gus Psalm Singers Worse than Anna
MAS and Sapphira."
THE ANONYMOUS AUTHOR
goes Oh to say that many seem to
think they can hire whomsoever they
may think proper to sing in their
churches, all classes and grades, even
the weak and irreligious. As proof
of this, it is said that one of the daily
papers stated recentlv that some of
the choir singers are holding back
from engaging themselves IN order to
hire themselves to the highest bidder
for the coming year. This shows, the
pamphlet states, that the singers
have no concern about the faith of
the church in which they sing, but
"the consideration which governs them
is money, and nothing else Now all
religion is based on the faith
"ot the person engaged in worship"
But the argument goes on to show that
the singers are engaged in worship,
and that they are frequently persons
who have been induced to leave their
own church to go into the other
churches and render q service that
will be conducive to Gods glory simply
for momentarv considera ton. The
subject of Catholics singing in Protes-
tant churches is taken up, and the
statement is made that Catholics teach
that all persons not in their church
cannot possibly be saved. "And yet
members of that church are paid to
come into Protestant churches and
worship God in a way that, they firm
ly believe, is leading these with whom
they are associated down to hell" The
old story is told of the Catholic young
lady VINO sung in Protestant church,
and when her mother was asked wheth-
er she had turned Protestant, the lady
replied, why no. She goes to mass
every Sunday morning before going
there to sing" This is used to prove
that Catholics believe they cannot
worship anywhere outside their own
church, and the pamphlet continues,
"But, as is generally known, after
going to mass, they Catholics think
they have the privilege of going to
picnic or any other kind of frolic on
the Sabbath day, and doubtless they
look upon their sham worship in
Protestant church with no more faith
nor concern, nor consider it any more
acceptable to God than would theat-
rical entertainment at the same time
and place and for the same people"
This statement is probably intend
ed to be severe and is certainly an
grammatical, but in neither quality
does it come up to the following.
which is given as a sample of The
solilequy ola Catholic singer in a
Protestant church ''These poor de-
luded creatures are on their way to
N Al