The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1894-10-13

10 "hd1 uO ucdIu. IL was HOU visible
to the natural eye. And so it seems
to me that we need to hear this call,
and when we hear it we need the in
spiration of Almighty God, but it
will not be possible for us to go and
convert the world until we are our
selves converted. I think you under
stand about as well my views on these
subjects as if | should talk a good
while longer.
/ have passed the greater part of
my life in loyal service with our de-
nomination of Christians which, when
l was ordained, was not as much re-
spected in the world as it is today,
though it counted its numbers,
double or treble, but it was a very
indifferent way of counting. I think
our denomination really began with
its organization in 1870; that is the
place to date from, not from the peo-
pie that went scattering their truths
around, in school houses and else
where. Bro. Shinn can count up
more churches that he has organized
in the last two years. than we have or
ganized in Illinois in the last twenty
years, presume. That is the way
the fathers counted their churches.
One more thought and I am done.
One of our ablest men, began profess
sional life under my individual, per-
sonal, loving auspices in the city of
New York. He was such radical,
SO much CT a nationalist, that DR..
Fisher told me that he had very seri-
GUS doubts of permitting him to be
ordained. He was called to church
and for a few years preached in that
large and aspiring way, when sudden
lv he changed, for some unaccounta-
BILE reason, and ever since has been
among the most conservative young
men-he is getting old too-that we
have had among us. | asked him
one day why he changed SO suddenly.
He says, "The fact is, when I began
to preach these large and indefinite
ideas, | believed l was ahead of most
of the writer's in the New Testament
and SO on, and l did not hesitate to
make it known. I had permission to
preach the truth as / believed it.
Then people came in great crowds,
the galleries were filled, and after
they had been coming several weeks
[ got a little note book and brought it
to church and thought I would see if
| could not get some of those people
that I saw every Sunday. To one
man I said, what is your name?
would like to get your name down on
the book; l would like to call upon
YOU. I may need you in some emer-
gency when those old folks are
crowded out 'Oh, no. You must
not try to get me; oh no, don't put
me down, for God sake, don't put me
down, cannot be harnessed.'" And
he said he tried it over and over again
until he became so disguised, he
did not change for policy, but went
to studying the subject over again
and found that the best way to organ
ize was to get people who were willing
to take responsibility. If they were
not able to hire sitting, they at least
should be willing to have their names
recorded as members. Then he dis
covered that there was vast mass of
"liberalism" that had no desire to be
organized or counted. He studied
upon the subject anew and found
that he had really been educated
under the auspices of Christian de-
nomination and that by his ordina-
ton VOWS and education had virtually
pledged bis life in the service of God
to work Loyalty to build up that in
stitution in the world, and that if he
should go back on it, unless he was
thoroughly convinced, and in that
case he should deliberately withdraw
from it and do as one of our brethren
suggested this afternoon, start new
one from new ground and build from
the foundation up, he would be dis
loyal to God and his own conscience.
| do not know as that is any criterion
for you and me to go upon, but after
all it furnished me with considerable
thought l believe in our denomina-
tional purpose, that it is to proclaim
and build up the church, based on
the faith of Universalism with all that
that word can be made to legitimate
ly mean in the Christian religion; that
our field is wherever there is Mace
donian crying from the inner recesses
of human soul; that our organiza-
ton in Convention and official equip
ment is ample for the work
n