New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-04-20
PULPIT SKETCHES.
THE REV DIR. G. II. PARkiICRST, MADISON
SQUARE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

of the ruer society. III this arrangement colony "
13i members was liberated from the Central Society
who. taking with them their pastor. pr. "iIhau
Adams, organized in 1898 the Madison Square
Church. From the outset the enterprise was gencr-
oIsy stocked with the elements of success Inc pastor
already strongly established in the confidence '
admiration of the evangelical churches "h"c INV
COLONY itself Wac Iich in the best representative ere
ucut. of Prc.bvtcrianism. In 1854 the new ed'nce
was completed and dedicated. Ii occupies one I'll '"o
most admirable site. in the metropolis on the southeast
,,,,er r Twenty -nurthst. and Madisou-aVe lor NOT
only does one Of the prettest parks provide oro'"
iaudscanc foreground, with its fountains promeh"u'S
and monumental statues, hut it commands tue gTe''
ovoine which reaches nolthward for miles, h@rdiE
smirchcd by the touch Of traffic Already become lne
chief centre of hotel life and the amuseInenS mat con
,r !, ,Lr ncighborhond is net unlikely Ia make unex-
rcted demands this great church which IN the near
t,,ro may require some mo LITIGATION of its mini.tra-
,,,ns With Trinity Chapel Just the square in
Twenty -ffth-st, which may be set down as MIXTURE,
the vast i"ctfatng population that c3nunua s" ie
and cddieS through these thoroughlateS j. NOT e''
without religious consider alton.
he growth of the Madison Square Church seems
almost only for the great increase
of membership hut M i's social value ana sgmhcare
The 1871 original Central people with eleven who
inincd them from other churches at the outset IN
ts13. have grown into great constituency "t more
than 800, VIII" spread from river to nVer, with
families as fan uptown as Nincteth;!t Two strong
and thrifty missions among the English and ,ielnans
are Jointly established in ThIreth-st, near ThlTd-ave,
under the direction of two assistant pastors
a STRONGLY REPRESENTATIVE CHURCH.
Dr. Adams resigned il 1878 10 accept the presidency
of the Union Theological Seminary after vigorous
and most successful pastorate of more than twenty
ycars. In 1873 DR.. Tucker succeeded retiring in
1873 To- the Prnfc ssorshp Of Sacred Rhetoric III An
. dover Theological Seminary The present pastor De
Charles II. farkhnr>t. was installed in 1850
he ministers to great congregation, made mp largely
of the busiest thTiitiet most cultivated and thought
live tho best houses read the best
b",ks. buy the finest pictures handle the controlling
of finance figure in the leading courts MI al
vahNad positions in the learned professions or look
after the great educational and benevolent organize
Of the city and country 1t has from its earliest
DAYS beea strongly representative OF New-EnSaud
ideas and predictions
There is little of the Knckerbocker foreign ele
visible. The old New Workers took to the First
Church at Fifth-ave and Twclfth.st, and to DE-
Crosbys while English. Scotch and Irish Presbyterian
ism is much at home in Dr. John li1lrschuIch Al
Madison Square encounter New England constlt
uencv Ii is largely conservative advance or dc
veiupmcnt of Congregational culture on the one hand
turning away from Radcali~m, yet the other with
ltlc love for Cavinin the Westminster Catechism
Among the officials, members aud pew holders are
met The of the Rev. Drs Roswell d. iitchcock
Scbaff Field and Prime; DR.. Markoe, Cyrus W Field,
William r. Dodge, d. Willis james, members Of the
Moves, Donaldson and Stokes families DAVID Wet
more. Francis +. Msrbury, Albion +. Wan, theodore
W. Dwight. s Hastings Grant, Ezra NJ. Kingsley and
Louis {. Tiffany.
NATURE THE WORSHIP.
4 strong feeling for Hturgical worship is felt in the
services The apostles Creed has been rescued from
traditional obscurity and is audbly recitcd by the
congregation. The Gloria in Excelsis from the Book
of Common PRAYER is Familiarity sung by the people to
its old setting the "long prayer Inoduate gracefully
with the Lords PRAYER which j. sad ia concert. BIT
The unjnu IF cnnuuali-m and ton tlitv else
where in the service Ia jar and ca-h with the
grave, somhIe-c0Orcd passages from the ancient tui
e and it remains to he seen how this old wine ii new
bottles now being Land in 10y almost all the non
Gcal cbarche, will behave under these strange con
ditions The old lturgies are expressions OF mystic
fervor and spiritual subordination to church life and
fellowship; while the spontaneous aud improvlsed
worship of Protestansm is the symbol OF ndivduasrn
aud mtrammclled ldeali,m The public worship OF the
Madison Square Chlroh practical and intelligent At
tempt raternizc the broadly cOnraeted clements
In furthcranCe Of these Titnastic tendencies there
wa ON Easter Day lavish display of flowers and
blooming plants ta,tefllly grouped above the pulpit,
althodgh none Of the Catholic symbols or emblemS
were noticeable, and the choir of six or eight nicely
contTased voices or two Easter anthems with
reasonable appreciation.
The great Gothic church, in brown stone, with its
commanding spre, provides Of the -tateost land
marks in the city 1t Designed by the elder Up
John The Vie plain and severe leaning To ma sve
ness There a,es, and of cOur-e no ciereStOry
lights. This gives the boldly spreading IN
terror roofing rather heavy effect which Is partly re
leved by slender pandr arches and the iadciouN iSe
Of sharp primitive coors The whole interior surface
j. wrapped in singuarly harmonious ire.co decoration
In the devout spirit of sever" netaevai7m Ihe eX-
treIneSt ritaalism or recommendation could AK for
nothing more expressive or edifvng bold. deeply
reres-e roundarchcd panel breaks the eastern wall
fr tho uuuit Dlforn behind which rises an eab rate
Gothic rerodos in trptvch form, wrought bea llIy IN
black walnut. Galleries with brilliantly Illuminated
fronting ill the sides and west end which serves for "a
choir and organ gallery.
PICTURESQUE FIGURE AND a VEHEMENT SPIRIT.
hut no fresco mediaeyalism can touch or trans
mute the preacher In his silken gown standing well
boi~eI 1.-the graceful. he rem aims the perpetual
achronism Of the stalwart sturdy NNnconfOrmit and
Independent. HIS il clearly picturesque figure never
theles-. There is something Of the Van pyck cat Of
heal and facial expression Masses of let black hair
.,L III lyl yrit1e hpny mad lQ ON
pies there /, a mild md-tache and whskered chin
The large. black, heavily proved Gold spec.
tacles sim, IN something of their kindlng The com
peNion Is warm brunette TIE V"lce Is rather nara
aud metallic in timbie, reedy and narrow in volume
Their. Is little and mfrcQuent gesture and that il,
mostly dgital and rarely gets above the wrists or
op-cns the eibow- The sermon rs serious. thorough
going work. Plainly it is charged with the weeks
thought and life II is read word for word, the Doctor
bending his manuscript, il were alive and " en-
rapport" with him. II y curious absorption aud
the speaker seem, bm-el charged and snrcharged
from the written pages which sery" as qoickening
battery Ia hestrt and brain.
At The ontsct the accent and infection arc strongly
provincial and stir with quaint Ne" Ehg and Mtona
ton which Ia at once inimita1ie ana indsstrnchle
The Van Dyck ideal fades oIt of sight. aud AZ
close quarters WIN restless penetrating ingenious
picturesque, vehement spirit not emotional bnt
sharply in earnest and irrepToSsiby energetic. The
methods pecnliar for they are fearless unconven
tonal and make extr0vagaut demands rpon the
creative resources OF the preacher For the is
tunmary of sharp condensalinus OF ntessences dis
,o,ions of clearly cut mintages of upi1ae inaglos
snd ayticeTs achiey Ihe text Il an inpe aile
magnet with its brisk p0aritV, and everything In the
earth and under and above it which has e. er fallen
within the keen sight of the prea'h e and L. at all aka
90 the text in remote dcgiec seems clustered
about these magnetic words They not boT0w iDgs
nor clippings gIeanings "reminiscences and this
l. the strangest thing about the work Here are drO
sayings touched with dry yet revcrent Wit, which
savors of Montague or Thomas Fuller DR.. Franklin;
and infrequently OF the great Proyerbalist and
yet they each aud all bear the honest trademark Of
DIR. rarkhnrst There is quick succession of
nJothegms, condensed metaphors 0bque illustrations
keen CONGRATULATIONS, that fall into the general purpose
of the sermon like the line and stppe of the engraver
or etcher The result is instant brlfancy a
pungency. intensity, lavish strcwing Of costly
anxnra nLich rYet the attention nnd almost blind