St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1888-08-23
CRITICIsING THE MINISTER.
Ckristian Renister

When the minister is first settled,
everything is 'fheavenly,"-too heav-
emily to last. Wherever two or three
of the parish meet together, felicita-
lions are exchanged upon their good
fortune, and the new minister's praises
are loudly chanted. Apparently, his
adOring flock would hardly be surpris-
ed to see him appear in the pulpit
Sunday morning with a visible halo sur
bounding his head. like the saints of
bid.
Let not the minister, however, de-
eeive himself by dreaming that this
IDEAL state of things will last. His
3rial hour has not yet come. But it
will. Generally in the second or third
Sear of his pastOrate, the reaction sets
in. The novelty has worn off; and
his people, having become accustomed
TO his special gifts and graces, accept
Them as a matter of course. The strag
glers and drifters have floated off in
The train of some other novelty; the
episOdicai people have become episod-
ical once more in their attendance, and
Dnly the faithful few are left-the
boy stOOd- on the burning deck" sort
1 of people, who are always sin their
3 pews, no matter what the vagaries of
the weather and the rest of the parish.
Fhe wave of enthusiasm has subsidized
and a cold wave of criticism sets in,
Swelling as it rolls.
IA The people begin to go to church in
a critical mood instead of an admiring
one, which makes a deal of difference
how a sermon sounds to one. 1t is so
much easier to criticise a sermon than
10 write onel The merest modicum
of intellect apparently fits one to criti-
else the minister's most scholarly eff
forts. More often, however, it is not
3 the minister's sermons which give dis
4 satisfaction. | have seen-every one
has-able men of excellent character
criticised out of their puIpits for the
s most trivial nOthings. 1t might be
sOme insignificant personal eceentrici-
ty, some popularity of dress or bear
ing or manner. 1t might be because
be was considered to slight his SER
mons, and spend too much time run
hing about the parish calling, or in
working in outside charities and town
matters. Or it might be because he
a spent too much time in his study,
writing indeed most admirable SER
mons, but sit is three months since he
a has called on Mrs. Jones'"
Perhaps the minister has ventured
& 10 preach politics or temperance in the
pulpit, and SO offended one or two
wealthy pew-renters to the point of
withdrawal or he may have turned
#fMugwump," and voted as he pleased,
without consulting the parish, just as if
he were a man, and not a minister.
4 Or perhaps-very likely, indeed-his
wife has or has not done something.
4 "a parish may not feel quite sure that
they own the minister, body and soul
but few of them doubt their absolute
possession of his wife.
II Two or three things it would be we'll
for us of the parish to remember.
ziFirst, because we pay the minister a
small sum for services faithfully rem
4 dered, we do not own him. He is not
teetOtum to be spun at our pleasure.
4 He is an independent soul, accounta-
BILE not to the parish, but to God alone.
4 for his opinions and the conscientious
use of his powers.
Secondly, we must remember that
the minister is human-indeed, makes
no pretentiOns to be otherwise. First
class angels are almost as rare in the
pulpit as in the pews. The secret of
his power lies in the very fact that he
speaks to US from the level of our
common humanity. Tried and tempt
ed as we are, like us not always with
out sin, he seeks to share with US the
strength he has gained in trial, to lead
us to heights well won from sorrow
and temptation, where he would walk
with us as ga brother and a friend"
Being human, he will necessarily have
imperfections. But do not let US look
at him through a microscope, exagger
ating each little rOughness into a
mountain. Let us stand far enough
off for proper perspective, take the
4 large view and get the "altOgether" of
him. If, on the whole, seen thus, we
Il find him to be earnest in service, faith
/ full to the best he knows, doing his
duty as in Gods sight, do not let us
block his way with our petty criti-
Ecisms. Let us accept him "for better,
4 for worse" just as he is. If there be
some points we wish were different,
let us remember it is often wiser to
z4'bear those ills we have" than "fy to
A others we know not Of" Instead of
take hold and help him; and very
likely his trivial imperfections will
shrink back into their proper nothing
ness, and be forgotten.
Beware always of the first begin
yourself; and, if some one else does,
stifie your natural human impulse to
4 hear and to tell some new thing, and
: stamp il out then and there, as you
Z would a little fire on the edge of sun
4 dried prairie. Take a decided stand,
! hold up his positive qualities, and the
negative will be forgotten. We never
can know the influence welded by
4 even one human being who is in dead
earnest. You are only one; but you
n may prove to be like the little Dutch
boy whose tiny finger stopped the
leak in the dyke, and saved his native
N town.
A peculiar tenderness and cOnsidera-
Il ton would seem naturally to mark
relations at once so intimate and SO
! solemn at all events, a great breadth
4 of the charity that 'ssuffereth long and
y is kind" that "thinketh no evil" that
"beareth all things, hOpeth all things,
enduTeth all things"