Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1891-06-11

. .nen or MS age, is placed over ii as lie nae.
20 e1' AUG AUG rector. That church Is the mother
va hhls' the parish is the same and
LAX. IS lts FIRST Minister.
Co., the speaker quoted striking pas-
s ss.g from Alexander Browns volumes en-
utled The Genises OF the limited state -
ana continued: '''''''
TIE OLD BAPTIsrNAL FONT.
80 when your vestry-book was beppn in
tioV the principal church in the par;Sb yvos
hurie's church on tho north side Of Jam"S
liVer zen miles below Richmond. Thai
church has been demolished in the last half
century The only relic of il that remains
Is the bowl of your baptismal font n was
round miles away from the site of CurIe's
church. IN collar, where il was used as a
mo- taI tor beating bominy, and here II is
10 holo the sacred symbol Of the waters of
baptism, wherein God declares vour chill.
dren TO be His children. and {be HoIy
spirit His gift TO them and Christ's re-
oehptlon their glorious possession.
ITS CONCEPTION.
In 1888 under the ministry Of tho Rev
Mr. Stth. the grandson of William Ran.
uolph, OF turkey Island. who had received
the pest education that America and Enc
lahu could glyo, and who afterwards he
came the historian OF Virginia, the plan
LOT building new church was apitated
Aiter some debate and acting under the
auvice OF William Byrd, n distinguished
EouSieinah OF the Colony, who gave the
land, the vestry of Henrico parish chose
this spot, called Indian Hill, at Rich
mond."' Under the superintendence of
Richard Randolph it was built and entered
LOT worship on the 10th of June, 174l, lust
one hundred and fifty years ago to-day.
SPIRIT OF REAsoNABLENEss.
A kindly and genial book has been pub
ilShed here IN Richmond telling Of the
loving brotherhood between your rector
Dr. buchanan, and the Rev. John Blair.
Presbyterian minister in this CITY. The
church was loaned to our sister church and
each minister Blair, the PRESBYTERIAN. and
buchanan, the Episcopalian -ministered
10 thelr respective congregations on alter
nate. Sundays. 1t may be that the
kindly relations between these two
pastors of different churches may
nave helped TO transmit to our
people in Richmond a spirit of sweet
reasonableness and of kindly brotherhood
between the various denominations Of
Christians. To this simple beginning NAV
| be traced perhaps stream of higher
Christian civilization upon the subject Of
the relations between the various Pro-
testant churches of Christendom than we
hud IN some other communities.
The Church that asserts exclusive
claims FOR It's ministry, its worship. and
ITS organization Is unconsciOusly to itself
IT'S own worst enemy. The Church that
believes in itself is loyal to itself but
loves and believes in and welcomes with a
brothers fidelity the sister Churches
/ our land. T. RI
Under the ministry of Rev. William
/ Lee, in 1923, the church took the name of
/ st. Johns, In 1862 the Rev. DR.. Nor
wood began his ministry in this
/ church, and resigned in 1S68-years of bu-
initiation, but years Of noble endeavor
/ years of splendid sacrifice. but years when
/ your people were making names in history
/ that are never going to die. Then comes
/ DT. Henry Wall, and succeeding him in
/ 1875 comes the Rev. Alexander w. Weddell.
/ You can tell me more of him than | can
/ tell YOU. He had high aims q manly heart,
| a lofty enthusiasm in the work of minis
! tering 20 souls. You have put beautiful
monument at the door of your church that
/ tells in eDquent words the record that he
made among you. For your children 5
/ sake NAV God keep his memory green.
And here your old church has stood all
/ along these years that we have travelled.
/ IL has been looking down from this hill
upon Richmond and seen all the stages of
/ its life. 1t has reioiced in the birthdays
and the cornerstone LAYING of all these
other churches-its children.
/ "On the hill by the river II has watched
| the steady but sure growth of your beau
| tlful city of the dead, and IT has caught
| glimpses from its tower of the marble
/ monuments through the trees in the morn
/ ing and the evening sunshine.
SIGNIFICANCE OF CITY.
How wonderful is the moral and spirit
| nal significance of a city! Some one has
said God made the country, man made the
| city. But God made the city, too. The
/ city IS His ordinance for the necessities OF
[ human civilization. he ordained 1T TO be
| the workshop for the cOuntry-the point
where the commodities of all climes meet,
/ and thence are distributed to the peoples
and the nations. What is city but a
| realization; q living symbol OF world
1 that is fallen. but of a world that has been
| redeemed? And the Church of Christ, the
| Saviour of men; how 1t stands IN the cen.
/ tire of all the activities and varied LIE OF
I the city, and how 1t interprets the city TO
/ itself.
I'm closing let me point 10 one or two
| lessons that st. Johns teaches us to-day.
| II teaches US TO persevere, to hold on :;
that the day of our usefulness and our
work as q church may seem 70 be az an
end, but we must be patient. God mas
work for Us TO do. Three times In It's ms
tory its vestry and its people were ABOUT
the providence of God kept 1t here.
LIVED THROUGH HARDsHIPs.
"When the Monumental was built you
said that would take away our life, and 1t
seemed TO do il for long time. When st.
paups was built YOU said our fate Is sealed ;
we must not expect people TO pass by those
beautiful churches and come miles away 70
worship in these old walls. But the Old
Monumental is new and strong and full OF
gospel life. and st. Paups ls strong ana
| Beautiful, and old st. Johns Is mere sun
/ Youth warmer with the spirit OF Chrlst
| Than il was in the morning of ITS life; 90
| inc wider work than it has ever done be
fore. The lesson IS: Hold on, the tldg
NAV ebb tonight, but It comes IN glad ana
strong in the morning.
THREE GREAT MEN.
And then st. Johns has its lesson 10
| Tho country-to our loved land
/ us its one hundred and hftieth
: b;rtbday. You remember the name
/ of the man | mentioned VINO super
/ intended the building OF these wars III
/ 174l: YOU remember again the same lduiil
| ly name of the layman VINO repre1cHttSsu u
| Won i'm the important councils OF tne
| Church after the Revolution. These men
-, c-reot- grandsons of one of the earleSt
| members of yOur parish-a simple, siIonP'
true man he must have been. Qu ,- Oh ne NE
! ioins sprang three great men,, lie was the
I ancestor of Chief-Justice Marshall tnt
Greatest Iurist of America. lie was the
/ ssncestor of Thomas Jefferson, the greatest
nolitical thinker of America. lie was tnt .
aepcester of Robert +. Lee, the greates'
! soldier of America. Hewas also the an lts
tor of that other great American st t,t;@-
man. Edmund Randolph. once your }uniol
warden after the Revolution, ana Wiz VIZ
renr ,ps you in the diocesan counciil'
| Of your Church, whom, though much nus nus,
| understood, regard as one of the great 'a't
and purest of American politicians, SsI"ISo
! that they all should come OF the onsPtIiu y.
/ If that simple, strong man, VINO hNeu ~
st Johns. through its association VIII VIII
these elders of our land, reminds It's couh,
nv TO-DAY of the old days of PLAN liyih "
! and high thinking and speaks To o1 -
,1arnine 10 these DAYS, when greco OF gan
I ,breatens 10 paralyze the intellect ah h
cnry1nt the heart and undergrouhd III, S
f9oInaetions of the nations. 1t SAYS, pay
had NV dark days and have ceen the iiEn
break through the clonds.