The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-06-05
CURSE or THE CHURCH.
The Rev. F. c. A. Jones De-
tends the Rev. Won
%BarchWitcz.
sreciol to The Jerseu city Ec,rs.

| have been worked up DY tne lectHt pun
~lication of the attack made by The Kev.
o. Won BarchwItcz OF the Baptist Gospel
Tabernacle, In his open letter addressed
to the Rev. Dir. Henry Spellmeyer OF the
Central NJ. E. Church. was shown last
night before Il large congregation in the
Noun Pleasant Baptist Church. The
congregation listened to a sermon de-
liyered by the Rev. f. G.. A. Jones.
The reverend gentleman took for his
his subject The Amusement Heresy,
aud his text: "Ye Are the Salt or the
earth; ye arc the light OF the world"
Matt. ". 1914.
After dwelling on the fact that the
| church of Jesus Christ is d public institute
| Lion, and ne such nothing in It's consLltu-
ton or conduct should be secret, the ReV.
Mr.. Jones went into an explanation OF
the Rev. o. Won Barchwitcz's open letter.
in which the recent entertainments OF
the Ladies' Parsonage association were
| denounced as ''dime museum" shows.
The speaker sald:-
OPEN CRITICISM.
..Brother Won Barchwitcz, with myself
and others, tax The ground Indicated,
and without regard to sect will c~ritlcisc
| churches conduct and court criticism OF
| our own. In regard to what DIR. Gordon
of Boston calls the Amusement HeresY'
there is Il revolt pcrteudiug that Will over
throw the prevailing dishonesty OF
| church finance. Brother Won BaSchwitcz
has fired n ponlb that | hope may clear
| the unspiritual atmosphere which now
\ enyelops us. In spite OF the outcrles OF
| disc0urtesy, the bitter fling and hostility
which lave answered his letter TO the
| Rev. Mr.. Spellineyer, l take sides with
| him as a reformer, for whom we should
pray Gods blessing, and by whom we
ought TO stand.
~ defend his act with every supposed
fault of it. There was no discount e5y TO
| a brother minister or TO a sister church
In the action. 1t was al indignant re-
| monstrance TO a system which the Cen
trail Methodist Caurch does not alone
practice, out which at this juncture it
| foisted into public notice by the accl-
| dents of the case. No personality was
intended, Dor can any person not olinuea
by prejudice and a sense of shame sse In
the act anything disrespsctful. Yet II
there WAS my one OF THESE oahelui
| qualities in the act it would become US
| mora TO inquire II we were not IN the
wrong, rather than raise the cry Cruelty
HIM. 10 me iu seems necessary that
| the churches should listen TO the report
| of this bomb and open their eyes 10 see
that they are maintaining.
AN I~NToLERABLE NUISANCE.
s"TbiS amusement craze IN The churches
| is an iptoleraUle nuisance. Every person
IN the fellowship vino has a fad Is ever on
| the alert to amuse the people for u couSld-
GRAFTON. Never flQm any benevolent pur-
| pose. Amusement moBgers have IN
| creased in our churches. even when mem
bers nave mo increased. And the deyel-
| opment of the show has not developed
| the life. A minister can get up great en-
| tnusiAsm IN a short t1nle over the pro-
| ject Of fairs and festivals, but it is like
| pulling teeth to get the salne joyous ac-
lion for righteousness. La TACT, In The
church 1t has come to Doss that a minis
ter needs more 20 havs an education
under the greatest living Snowman than
to be filed with the Holy Spirit. DE has
10 decide more questions about shows
than conduct anu Is frequently pressed
| with aft lirs that are totally foreign to
h is Masters work.
The nuisance is suffered by rich and
DOOR. Ticket selling Is u 1ne art in our
| sunday schools now. The person With
money must buy more tickets Jnan can
be used, and the poor more Than thsY can
afford to buy. Young D,en are forced by
young women into the purchase OF what
they ought not 60 buy. ami a pressure,
| that speaks well for the push ana energy
| of the seller, is brought 70 bear on many
who cannot say no, SO that as a source OF
| amusement the laugh comes most to the
| people VINO get the receipts. Members OF
church or congregation are peStered SOU
| stanrly for one thing or another of this
sort.
CALLS IT A CURSE.
Ibid it stay within the church 1t would
keep the curse where it belonged. But
it goes abroad. In the days of the WISE
we read that wisdom crieIh aloud in the
streets; now it is the church ticket seller.
| Business men IRE affected by IL. Every
grocer, butcher, coal dealer or dry goods
merchant must buy in order TO keep the
| onnd will of hjG angrOnlprE He can 90
to hell If he wants to, but buy
| tickets he must. And if the experience
| OF trades people is like some ministers
| they would want to be sure there would
lie no ticket sellers in heaven before they
arranged to go there. For, l coDIess to
| more angry feelings over this than over
many other Things. Little children come
to my door from this and that church
and Sunday school to whom / ind it
difficult to say no. Scarcely a month
| passes by without some society, church
! or school sends me a bride IN the way Of
complimentary tickets, In order that !
may use my position 10 advertise their
fun. While the number of circulars re-
| ceiyed by me from the amusement para
| sites, whose aim is TO live by amusing
the churches and Sunday schools, is
enough to make quite a weight III my
waste paper basket
Continuing in this strain, the speaker
| drew a number of pretty SMILES tending
to show how the same methods would
work In the lives of private individuals.
.sIt is Significant" he added, That a large
percentage of defaulters in the past ten
years are from the ranks of church peo-
| pie" He said that he was not opposed
to having good entertainments, nor. il IL
| could he regulated, against a small en-
trance fee. But the moral tone OF the en-
tertainments SHOULD be upheld, he said,
| and the church should be benevolent and
| eelf-sacrificing.
VULGAR ENTERTAINMENT.
"Wnen money is the object In vlew,"
he continued. you must get the goods
that will sell, and if people like an enter
| tainment that borders oil vulgarity, why
q little thing like that must not stand in
| the way. A dolls contest. a broom drill
| or Mrs. Jarley's waxworks, ice cream and
other festivals may have an ennopling
effect, but very few Can prove It, Many
a child's heart feels a pang OF pain; often
are a Iife's enmity and bitterness put into
the mind by these contests and exhibit
| lions, and still more, | venture to say,
| that more than ouce the bloom has been
taken off modesty. Ii the spirit of Jesus
| Christ Is the standard OF a church's char
acter we see a peculiar improvement in
| our day. Our Saviour said that he who
| gave o cup of cold whey to one of the
| least of his brethren would reveal u dis
position pleasing TO God; we change it SO
as To- read, He that gives a plate OF ice
| cream for the small UNI OF fifteen cents
in a church entertainment Is q benefactor