New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-05-21
CITY EvANGELIZATION NEGLECTED.
A CITY PASTOR TELLS WHEREIN THE PREsBY
rER1AN CHURCH Is WEAK.

TERRAIN CHURCH Is WEAK.
"City evangclIstlon has been neglected 100 mueh'"
,.Ia N, pastor OF Presbyterian church In this city
tho other day TO Tribune reporter rs
pect4lly Is this true Of tho city Of Ne|-iorE In
iaab there were thirty eight Presbyterian churches
hcre: IN 1895, there forty-one; net gain
IN forty years OF thr,c churches, while the population
baa ,,crn,scd over a million We have helped other
denominations We have boon tho backbone OF inc
work OF the New York CITY Mission, most adsniraole
u,orh. hut I, IS not rhe Presbyterian Church our
oolcy has been un.ncsbytcrian. We have allowed
tho weak churchrs 70 die, or 10 fsd mSeraoie
c,s,cncc when tho very Of our pohiy Is taa
tho strong should support the weak HeW-iorR hNeS
ON A truck but great Presbyterian Chnrch mere,
hos zone on the theory that New.York was stad
country town with an unchang!ng population. ohl!
-ncon,ly have the methods changed, ana the "oih
shows a gratifying inCreaSc. The plan OF allowing
n downtown church to give up It's plant an" move
,ntoUn 10 a mors eligible site; the plan OF allowing
, str,,ggnns church IN downtown district Z" pay
10. oUu way, do IT'S own work, and gradually ID aie
o,, the nIan OF looking upon downtown church a.
,s.io, crterprt,c 10 be coddlcd and nurSed, with no
evacuation OF the child ever reaching maturity
ali ,hcse AFRO un- PrcShytcran aud untnnstan Pres
byter1anism, II II Is anything. IS chuIchly church.
II believes "a church a. u centre NO downtown
church should be allowed to move uptown; let the
people establish a now church, but hold on 10 the
~,
ism has failrt I'LL recently, to do IN this city. Nay
more the Church. MT 10 deal successfully with this
problem must put mon and money into these old
contres-twO, three, or morn men In one acld-and
work tho field thoroughly, work which no one man
or church can do alone The planting Of new churches
in the rapidly growing portions Of the city, is as
nocesSary as the r~-nvg)ntIDg the old. Wo must
keep abreast Of tho ago have tho money, tho
machinery, all We need is wise direction and rdcious
management and the problem of city evangcllzatIon
bids fair ~ be solved. No ono church can solve Il /;
no ono method is sufficient 10 meet the demands which
a constantly increasing t-qoIgn population makes upon
tho lberslty, the plcty, tho conservation OF the
Church Of Christ In our city. Tho Presbyterian
Church Is we'll equipped 10 do her part OF the work.
but she needs 90 1.-Two up to hcr principles.
This Ia a danger and It threatens 10 impaIr the
aggressive work Of rho Church the sum total nf tho
candidates at present reported IN training for the
Presbyterian ministry Is larger than for some years bu,
II is totally insufficient to meet tho evcrncrasng do
mands Of progressive body kn the Presbyterian
Church. Tho Church Is growing. not SO RAPIDLY as
the Methodist the Baptist, but at rate far sur
passing the ability OF the ministry 10 keen pAce with
II. since 1900 the population OF the country has
increased fifteen times, while membership IN Tbs
mint try not than twenty TINES yteT m T
Is to-day for lack OF Prshytcrianlsm me tbnIr
the prcS6yteriSn idea Of govSrRmen Sa az VIII
cyangel1atlon. Of planting and maintaining ohUrrhes
w. MUSEUMS, W" nh,c Wv Hush machinery too few
men 100 many MN sicrs engaged In aiding up co,umn
81 figures and gathering statistics all Of which SHOULD
be done by laymen and too few preaching tho Gosre
and gathering souls; our limo IN Prrsbvtery Synol
AMI General Assembly Is largely occupied witi 1in,
the machinery when tho real need /, for tho anontin,
Of tho Spirit.
3" At the last meeting OF tho Synod OF New York ;
goody portion OF tho morning session was occunle,
IN discussing the weghy question whether tho rScor
Of Prosbytery which was printed was a fair recor
81 US proceedings J Tho younger generation o
ministers, while holding 10 all that IS grand and go0t
In the old conservative Church. arc growing rest!v
under these restrictions OF mint and anso and cnmmn
most wholly neglec ted. In wealth in position, Il
brains, In piety, the Presbyterian body stands no
~ tho mont OF all others, at least very close 10 the rs