New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-06-03
IN THE CHURCH PORCH.
ECCLESIASTICAL ANGLoPHMISM.

rbers ts n wave OF Anglophilsm-if, indeed, such
word IS allowable sweeping over the churches OF tho
United States. II hasn't done much damage YET, anu
perhaps has even done good, although intense hmcr
leans need not be expected to acknowledge IT, eomo
of the denominations have not been aifected As muoh
rs Others but all have felt the influence OF the EnBsn
renaissance which has been apparent In our urban
social ,lifc during the past few years. take 'ho
one matter of architecture. 1t Is not many
years since the Non Episcopal Protestant denomina-
tons looked upon Gothic architecture as snare Oh
the devil and a trap to lure mems souls to perdlioh
To-day they vie with each other In erecting churchcs
which are ecclesiastical in shape, style, and orna
mentaton that Roman Catholics and Episcopalans
might well look upon them with envy. Then taEe
note OF the music which you hoar In non-lltur-
gcal churches Mlsereres and Jublates and To Dcums
and Gloria Patrias, and even the Psalter sung 10
Anglican chants. Unversalist church In this city
has boy choir, and am sure there is nothing In
the Universast polty to prevent their being vested
I'm cassocks and cottas, II the congregation shouiu
wish 1t and possibly It may wish some day Lastly
notice the "boom' that has existed for British
preachers, temporarily knocked out OF tfne' by
tho allen contract labor law. We arc all proud or
these imported gentlemen, and we don't know now
how we could do without them; but the cold TACT
IS that their brilliant abilities alone did not induce
us to call Them No; 1t was our Angophsm
The clergy, and especially the Episcopal clergy, who
are bound by strong ecclesiastical traditions TO Eng
land, show this interest In things English in their
speech and dress Many of them have adopted the
markedly broad sound the letter a, that supposed
TO be so awfully English They are very careful
to give the open sound to the letter NJ In such words
as tuner and Tuesday, Indeed have recently
heard an Episcopal clergyman go far to give to
these words the pronunciation of chune" and Chues
day"-which to an American Is simply atroclous
"A 10 final Istc nricg
Whole aim In life is to be Anglican when he is not
Roman and who defines the Trinity to his people
" three Parsons and one God" this being Anglican for
" three Persons and one God.n Moreover in tho
Episcopal Church it IS getting that the clergyman
who says "A-men" and either and "nelthcro IS a
marked man. He may possibly succeed in getting
parish which Is not up In religious aesthetics, but II
he wants to be in the ecclesiastical swim he must say
"Ah-men' and "tthers and nLthern
So in the matter of clerical dress, there very
few Episcopal ccrgymen who can afford to ignore
this Anglican renaissance which is driving out the
old evangelical type Of Dress the distinguishing char
acterstc Of which was very prominently displayed
white tie To the young men who have Just been
ordained to the dlaconae in the Episcopal Church. I
would say, invest at In clerical coat, a cassock
vest, an NJ b. collar, SOFT low-crowned felt hat,
and IL possible long clercO military cloak with
cape To succeed in your field of labor you must be
orthodox in garb well as faith. You will have
much harder work getting parish in citizens dress
Than in clerical DRESS not to speak the fact that
your soundness in the faith may be doubted So fall
in with the fashion, though you do believe that
the cut of mans coat ought not to affect his useful
ness. You can console yourselves with the thought
that after all you be Just manly and lust as de
voted to your work in one pattern of dress as in
another n man may often show his Indifference TO
the passing fashions by conforming to them for he
hiatt ~ lie
The English Acadcmic hood too is rapidly coming into
favor AT the ordination service at Zion Church last
Sunday, L noticed five clergymen, including Bishop
Potter, who wore hood appropriate to their degree
This vestment which Is properly not a church vest
ment at all, but college rcgaa shows so well hang
ing over the back of the white surplce that look
for its speedy adoption by large numbers OF tho Episco
pal clergy. Indeed to-day 1 think that IL a
young Episcopal clergyman wanted position in tho
city, the wearing of hood would materially help him
thereto.
The good brethren of the Non-Eplscopa Churches arc
also beginning to pay attention tho externals
Of religion. In a mild and tentative way they are
introducing turgcal elements In their services. Only
last Monday the General Assembly of the Presbyterian
Church refused TO two clergymen of that Church
who had been accused before It OF using responsive
service Baptist Presbyterian and Methodist clergy
may be found wearing the Anglican clerical dress,
and in many little ways emphasizing the fact that
they order set apart from the rest of man
kind. And their congregations like these things In
deed, very intelligent and thoughtful Non Episcopal
Protestant clergyman with whom 1 was talking last
week told me that the pews leading tho pulpit In
this matter. "If we do not adopt" said he. somo
of the ceremonies and usages of the Anglican Church,
we soon find that young people begin to stray
away to the Episcopal services and when they once
begin to go, that is the last of them; we can never
Az nle beco and
20 abroad they at become dissatisfied with tho
plan old-fashioned unaesthetic services that our
fathers and grandfathers dearly loved And as the
people in churches rule, they soon have things
to suit them Hence piles of Gothic architecture,
and our great organs and our hghpriced choirs ana
our responsive services, and our Observance OF SO
MANY of the traditional ecclesiastical seasons once
peculiar to the Episcopal and Catholic churches We
are Obliged to compete with tho Episcopal Church on
IFS own ground Il we don't want to go under entirely
Puritan church of the old type, with It's IMPENDING
GREED its barn-kc architecture, Its cold unaesthetc
service and attitude of settled hostility to the secular
world of to-day simply couldn't live now, In our great
c,t,os Nobody would attend it. All this may be
, dcn,orable but 1t is the TRUTH and nothing Will
- ICED hr downing it, Anglophillsm Is In the air,
d the church as we'll as society will have to succumo
to it.
p,,t oven the most intense American must acKno"i-
odce that fhe Anglican renaissance has not as RUE
,nado our clergy less effective workers. The coSno'
polItan outlook which they have been taking during
tbe Last few years has been good for them' IL mas
put them in touch with the great religious anu Sociai
movements of modern life, and has taught them new
I'd ,mnroved WAYS of doing tho old work. The
church must change its machinery and methods from
tine TO time If 1t would live. And this is emphiu-
cauv true in restless age like this and in an epoch
NJ our national when are so TO speak, neither
children nor men, but in condition when wo feel
the VARYING emotions of both childhood and manhood
Tho wi>e leaders of the Church TO day ale the mon
who craft upon tho native stock OF American Christi
anIty all that Is useful and good In the religious
systems of the Old World The fathers Of American
h,nh for daY