New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-11-11
IN THE CHURCH PORCH.
RELIGIOUS NOTE AND COMMENT.

| tbe troublcl, asked him. =" Ideallsm' he replied
| My religion isn't concrete enough to suit people
| NV very first pastoratc camo to inglorious
| bccausc refused TO admit Ia n'rmb .fe' ~" -
| uas living I'm open sin. He the big OF the
| town and of my church, and when | anagonized him
| T became social and religious parah / stepped
down and out and went TO a church which expected
| ,ts pastor to preach little Christianity mixed with
| great deal OF denomnationalsm. l looked over the
field and concluded that the community was suffering
from scctarian dry rot, and for that decided
| IN nreach non-scctaran gospel OF course IL didn't
| ,rork the moneycd men said I killing the church
and refused to contribute while the women held In
| dlcnaton meetings in which they denounced me as
| bcretic SO | stepped out again. Then became
| pastor of a church which raised money by ranleS
! and fairs. | at put stop TO thls' WIN 1he
| result that my salary was cut down onehaif IN the
| course of a year. and was told that the nhahclai
,cIfarc of the church made my resignation desirable.
| Then I became pastor of snug htue chur'h coni
nosed OF welltodo people who expected 'heir pas.or
| m devote all his attention TO the pew-hoiders uu
my full duty to the pcwbolders; but urea 10 ao
| something also for the nonchurch-going people III
| tho narisb many of whom ! found very willing 10
come 10 church II they asked. There were
| plenty OF vacant pews In my church fOr them, pue
soon found that the officers Of the church oblectcd
10 such an increase Of membership inc rionoS' man
| In the place came TO me to protest an
| @sour wives and daughters said ne, object 10 MI
| ,nc I'M our church with ragamufilns. We built inc
| church for ourselves and we put up the money I"
support It, pay you your salary TO attehd 10 our
snIrltia interests and We don't think 1t right for you
TO devote your time to outsiders
| ".But nv dear SIR said /. these people are IN our
| parsh and they have souls TO be saved
| "sTbat's all right was his reply, let them hire
| hall and start a mission. We don't want you to
| bother about them
| After this l soon resigned, and concluded mat
either l wasn't cut out for minister OF eiso 'Ha'
modern congregations don't want man VINO Is ho'
willing to fall into the conventional ruts fortu-
| nately | have a modest competence, so mat uoh
have 10 swallow my convictions for the sake OF breah
| and butter But all the same, feel that have
| been a failure, and l would like to ask my bre'hreh
| where the blame lies. This is my little story, and
with slight variations It is the story OF great many
| earnest in the ministry To-Day
| lam good deal in sympathy with the Phiade'pha
clergyman who has recently been crtcisins certain
| kinds Of church music. Many of our churches ne
| saws are only appendices to concerts often inc
noorcr the preacher the finer the church and choir
Many peoplc 90 TO church Just for the music Iheh
| why keep the preacher In some OF our chuIchos
II costs $50 TO sing Jesus, Lover of My Sour 70 me
tune when the Swallows Iiomeward Fly "lllc
| ont an anthem as sung, and what nonsense II
churches can have concerts Sunday, why can't the
worId1 Why not get the chorus girls to sing inc
| rr,iees NJ the Lord on the Sabbath They are not
busy elsewhere and they will fill me front sed'S'
How much like Heaven It will be when IN our sochi
| services on the Sabbath we shall be favored WIN
snaches from the leading operas by the most ei'-
| nent artists In some churches the choir does inc
singing the preacher the praying 'ho oons''s""'-
| the paving and the farce IS ended
| T." of us rouse IN some old tunes and hymns that
| have bcen only half awake since the days OF our
crandfathcrs. With the human voice SO wohuerluiS
organized that in the planest throat ana luhss .nel
are fourteen direct muscles which can make lo,ooo
| different sounds and thirty Indirect muscles "hon
can make IT Is estimated more than 1'o'ooo'ooo VI
| sounds why them not have congregational singing
| friend tells me that Pundlt Raghunath Rao, the
Dewan of Indore, has recently put forth caech'si
| Of the Aryan vcdic religion which Is taken, worn
| ,or word from the Westminster Assemby's shorter
c,ecb,sm-tbe questions about Christ being omitted
| The Dcwan defends the compilation on lno no'o'
ground that the truths Of the Catechlsm "hlch NO p
| rroprated are the common property OF Shrs'an'S
| and Hindoolsm, and that HIS compilation Will 'heio
tor, do much to bring about religious unity DOUBT
| To-, - iooks that way to him; but II he were oe''er
ooirted with Christian sectarianism, ne wouu uil-
dorstand that many good Christians are ABOUT do nu'
| nrosod IN the Westminster Cacchism as tneS ao
| to Hndoolsm.
| r,r,,g fine last few years have been trea'eu
~ great deal Of foolish gush about the ueau'S anu
inability of Eastern religions. doht uehS ,""' NO
| 900 many commcndable features about them' an"
hat they often get to the heart OF true rehsu
| - $40 understand H. But in thcir practlcal ir'ul'9
| hov cannot be compared with Christianity idNo
| concrctc instance The Rev. I. W. JeA- hi"Ip n'9
| tbls9 TO say about Bcnarcs, Win Us ''0V0 TO-.
| ,nr,ce step inside the city, he says. vi"
,,,o ,rarms with foctd apes another is stcrcorous
With COWS The stencil in the pas sageS icauns ~ '"S
,es s frirhf,: the filth beneath your feet Is Such
49,, ,bo toencst traveller would hardly care 10 lac"
| q twice Everywhere, I'm the temples III tue ny
| sbrincs by the street side, the emblem oi INC
e nhalllc Round one most picturesque t"'"Pio O"
narcntIv long since British occupation OcsH pio'
hi, sipcc the battle OF Watcrloo-runS an cN'criih
%,oro a,out fen feet from the ground TOO gross ior
| 49,, r IN describe: scenes Of vice, natural ana uH-
I'll visible TO all the world all day lons' "orSo
| ,h.r ANYTHING I'm the Lupanar at Pompch' No'h',e
| uat 7 saw I'm India reused me more ID d so"' ~
ocd ~ religious renovation by the goSpci oil Chr's'
! ,ha, what met the eye, openly, right anu '0'' ;"
Benares.'
CLERGYMAN of this city, who believes in rented
.ws took me TO task the other day for cntcshg 'hs
feature OF modern Christianity. no" Is INC
| ~ rrec,tlon going TO meet expenses, II IL doeSh
| 'O"s ~, rs ~ no asked Leaving out endowed
| ,sbes and the parishes which are jealous enough
sr tbcr church to contribute voluntarily TO It's sup
mort there will sim be left an immense majority vi
marshes I'm which there would be Dig dehcit every
wear If there pew rents This Is the cola iao',
and no amount of theoretical reasoning can get around
I, Nav he II YOU will print my statement, some
bodv will throw light the subject II so, shall be
! heartily glad to know how the thing can be done
Rut until them as practical man, must believe that
| in many cases rented pews are necessity
| After ALL, says a chatty clergyman, I'm Lend a
uands do not find It I'm heart to inveigh against
| vacationsr But II a clergyman really can't taHe
vacation he thinks that he can get along very well by
STAYING AT home To prove this. he gives schedule
| ~ the way I'm which he spent the dogdays at home
| Her, is the schedule:
| Six rise 80, devotions: to 30 reading morn
ing paper crrands and breakfast; 80, writing; 30
! sod reading: 10 30 sermonizing; II, Hight reading;
~ 40 romp with my children; l. dinner; ?, literary
hour with my children g. Sunday school lesson; 80
TO TO- left unapportoned 10 at night until the next