Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1891-10-02
Oh. mother. dear Jerusalem.
When shall I come 70 theei

was upturned, and then and there he yielded
himself to Christ. Oh, it. has an irresistible
power. Luther's sermons have been forgot
ten, but his Judgment Hymn" sings on
through the ages, and will keep on singing
until the blast OF the archangePs trumpet
shall bring about that very day which the
hymn celebrates l would to God that those
who hear me to-day would take these songs
Of salvation as messages from heaven; for
just as certainly as the birds brought food to
Elijah by the brook Cherith, SO these winged
harmonies God sent, are flying TO your soul
with the bread of life. Open your mouths
and take 1t, o hungry Elijahsl
In addition to the inspiring music OF our
own day we have glorious inheritance OF
church psalmody which has come down fra
grant with the devotions OF other genera
tions-tunes no more worn out than they
were when our greatgrandfathers climbed
I'D on them from the church pew to glory.
Dear old souls, how they used 10 sing When
they we're cheerful, our grandtathers and
grandmothers used to sing Colchester.
When they were very meditative, then the
board meeting -houss rang with South
Street, and "St. Eimond's" Were they
struck through with great tenderness they
saug Woodstock" We're they wrapped in
visions of the glory of the church, they sang
Zion" Were they overborne with the love
and glory Of Christ, they sang ariel" And
In those days there were certain tunes mar
ried to certain hymns, AMI they have livei
In peace a great while, these two old people,
and we have no right to divorce them.
"What God hath joined together let no man
put asunder.n But how hard-hearted we
must be II all the sacred music of the past,
and all the sacred music Of the present does
not start us heavenward.
| have also noticed the power of sacrei
song to soothe perturbation. You may have
come In here this morning with a great
many worriments and anxieties yet per-
haps, In the singing of the first hymn, you
lost all those worriments and anxieties. You
have read in the Bible OF Saul and how he
was sad and angry, and how the boy David
came In and played the evil spirit out of
him. A Spanish king was melancholy. The
windows were all closed. He sat in the
darkness Nothing could bring him forth
until Faraneli came and discoursed music
three or four days to him. On the fourth
day he looked up and wept and rejoiced, and
the windows were thrown open, aud that
which all the splendors Of the court could not
DO the power OF song accomplished. Ii you
have auxieties and worriments, try this
heavenly charm upon them. Do not SIT
down on the bank Of the hymn, but plunge
In, that the devil Of care may be brought
out OF you.
is always triumphant churchl II congre
CATION Is silent during the exercise or par
TALLY silent It is the silence of death. II
when the hymn is given out, you hear th'
faint hum Of here and there q father and
mother in Israel, while the vast majority are
silent, that minister Of Christ who is presid'
ing needs to have very strong constitution
IL ho does not get the chills He needs not
only the grace OF God, but nerves like whale
It Il, hnx rNapyNla VIII
have voice enough to discharge all thetl
duties In the world, when they come into th
house OF God have no voice TO discharg
this duty. really believe that II the churcl
Of Christ could rise up and sing as 1t ough
to sing, that where we have hundred soul
brought into the kingdom of Christ Their
would be a thousand.
But must now speak or some OF the OBJ
staces In the way OF the advancement of thi!
sacred music, and the first is that 1t has beer
impressed into the service OF superstition
am far from believing that music ought al
ways to be positively religious, Refined ar
has opened places where music has been sec
ulariEed, and lawfully so. The drawln!
room. the musical club, the orchestra tn
concert, by the qualification of pure taste
and the production Of harmless amusement
and the Improvement of talent, have becom
great forces in the advancement of our civil
Surrey gardens as it has to pray In 81
Paurs.
In the kingdom of nature we have the gla
f6ng OF the wind as we'll as the long mete
psalm of the thunder but while all this
So. every observer has noticed that this art
which God intended for the improvement {
the ear, and the voice, and the head, and th
heart, has often been impressed into the sd
vice of false religions. False religious hav
depended more upon the hymning OF the
congregations than upon the pulpit procian
alton OF their dogmas. Tartinl, the muslc'
composer. dreamed one night that Sata
snatched from his hand an instrument ar
PLAYED upon it something very sweet
dream that has often been fulfilled In o'
dav. the voice and the instruments th
: ought to have been devoted to Christ, ca
tured from the church and applied to pu
, poses of superstition
:. Another obstacle has been au inordina
/ fear of criticism. The vast majority Of pc
Pile singing in church never want anybod
else to hear them sing. Everybody is wal
, ing for somebody else to DO his duty. IL
ali sang, then the inaccuracies that are 81
: dent when only q few sing would not
/ heard at all; they would be drowned o,
God only asks you TO do as well as you ca
= and then, II you get the wrong pitch, or Ike
=. wrong time, He will forgive any defcien
of the ear and imperfection of tho voit
a Angels will not laugh IL you should lose yo
place in the musical scale, or come In at
r. close bar behind.
: There are three schools of singing, q
a told-the German school, the Italian schc
A and the French school of singing. NOW,
h would like to add fourth school, and I'll
a is the school Of Christ. The voice of a &
a trite, broken heart, although 1t may not
a able to stand human criticism, makes bet
a music to Gods ear than the most artls
7 performance when the heart Is wanting.
Ia know it Is easier to preach on this than i
TO practice, but | sing for two reasons-hr
II because like it, and next because WI
IA TO encourage those who do not know now.
,s have but very little faculty In that directi
in vet am resolved to sing. God has ct
"a nanded II, and Idare not be silent. Hec
Of on the beasts, on the cattle, on the drag
CO to praise Him, and we ought not be beh
w the cattle and the dragons.
81 Another obstacle that has been in the Y
10 of the advancement of this holy art
70 been the fact that there has been so mi
Inn angry discussion on the subject OF mu
ad There are those who would have this o,
else conducted by musical instruments.
IL the same church there are those who do
,es like musical instruments, and SO 1t is or
Of and no organ, and there Is fight.
On another church it is question whether
n. music shall be conducted by a precento
an by a drilled choir. Some want DIR
nj choir and some want precentor and Il
n is a fight. Then there are those who WI
,be like in the church to have the organ plt
nd in dull, llfeless, droning way, while t
on are others who would have it wreathed
ize fantasies, branching out in jets and spar
Of sound, rolling and tossing in marv'
at convultions as whom, in pyrotechnic
ara play, after you think a piece is eIhaui
st It breaks out In wheels, rockets, blue u
tbe and serpentine demonstrations.
the Some would have the organ played |
'es. most inaudible sweetness, and others W
ci have it full Of staccato passages that 7
mr.. the audience jump, with great eyes and
be on end, as though by vision OF the hey, "
o a of Endor. And he who tries 70 pleas
Iier will fail In everything. Nevertheless
ter are to admit the fact that this contest v
the is going on, not in hundreds, but In
low sands Of the churches of the United 5