Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1892-03-31

REV. u. II TRIEoU. CHAPLAIN l.. 5. \.
! Address delivered before the Ecumentcal con
ference, Wa-hin ION. u, e..
Ma president This is the only
subject on which ! have had any desire
to speak. There is one thing that
think ought 10 be emphasized, and that
one thing DO one las mentioned. II is
HE fact that We, followers OF the Master.
ana IN certain sense disciples Of John
Wesley, do not know how to reach the
poor We are talking about it and
discussing various schemes. and con-
Tossing by every word We say that We
DO not know how to do it, How and
When did We ever get ont of touch
with the poor: II We 90 back to that
polnt We shall learn how TO accomplish
this most desirable result
Then, in the name IF the poor man
and The working man vino are not here
TO speak for themselves. | object to the
consideration Of thi- matter from the
point Of view that 80 manv hold We
think of the poor as off at one side,
out Of the way. aud christian people
discuss methods OF getting over TO
them a. il they We're wild animals
The poor are exactly where the,
nave always been; if We are not with
them. and alongside of them. i. is time
we were. Let Us 90 to the poor with
the Gospel, in word and deed. That
will reach them. And for the rch-let
us 60 to them with the same Gospel
When they get the Gospel, we'll get
their money.
The most disgraceful thing in Meth
odsm in America is that a Methodist
church should ever move up town.
Are there not just as many people
down town as there ever were? Are
there not as many people at the North
End in Boston, for instance: Are the
Catholics moving up town: That church
has the finest organization in the whole
world, and we had a great deal better
be learning some things from it than
be decrying it.
We have in the 10Th chapter Of
Matthew graphic picture of the last
great day. There the King is repre-
senied as saying IL was an hungered.
and ye gave Me meat; was thirsty.
and We gave Me drink : | was a stranger.
and We took Me in; naked, and We
clothed Me; | was sick. and We visited
Me: | was ID prison. and We came unto
Me-" To-day He is crying in our
streets, iii the person of the poor and
distressed: Il am hungry. am
sick, | am in pris IN" Where is the
church that it cannot hear, and hearing
lind way to minister to the Master 5
needs! | do not find any fault with
the church. 1t would reach the poor il
it knew how to do it. Where is the
Moses to lead the church to the poor !.
And then word as to the preaching.
In this countrv-I did not hear 1t in
England-when We want to compliment
d man on his sermon. and il isn't yery
good sermon. we tell him it is Cos
pei sermon" Heaven keep US from
preaching anything except Gospel ser
mons. That's our business. But lust
think how hard 1t is to do it in a splen-
did church in some wealthy suburb built
almost wholly from the proceeds of the
sale of an older church down town
proceeds which belong to Gods peo-
pie in that neighborhood, no matter
whether they are members of the church
or noD-l say, how hard it must be
under such circumstances to preach
Gospel sermon from the text: Twill a
man rob God!" Let political economists
talk about ''natural increment" as
much as they will, but lei US accept the
fact that when church is dedicated to
God, and the land afterwards comes to
be OF great value, the increase is His.
for work right there, just as much as the
original church was His.