The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-04-09
spInrrr1n H.nrrorirs.
a Jersey city Epsscep.i Ctsrryza.'s Opi.-
iou 81 NTosrru Revtvaitsts.

a Jersey City EPiscor.i Cisrny-an's Optn-
Toe 81 Mosrru Revtvsiists.
The Rev. Dr. T. L. stoddard. rector OF st.
Johns free Episcopal Church in sum nit ave-
nue. Jersey City. IL not an edmirer OF the
evsnRelists and reviyalists with which this
part Of the country has recently been flooded.
Ho has placed his opinion Of them on record.
and has thereby brought upon himself some
severe criticisms
AT the beginning Of Lent" he said yester-
day. e called attention to the revival move
ments going on about us In New York. Brook
lyn. and 10 our own eity. I spoke OF the sig
ni6cance OF the fact that these movements
should synchronize with our Lent. aud that
this fact made our RESPONSIBILITY rs church
men all the greater The union m settings on
this hill seem to have been we'll attended. and
TO have been conducted with soberness and
propristy. In New York and Brooklyn. on the
other hand, to say nothing OF nearer home.
the methods employed must have seemed to
us painful grotesqus and almost profsne.
remember as a boz the old revival preach
ers of that day. They preached terrible ser
mons-very long very hot. full Of Calvinism
and hell fire. But the preachers we're spiritual
men, and they kept tn EN- selves and their hear.
ers on high spiritual plane. They appealed
s6sii congregation. Their services were de- g
tectiye In many WAYS. but they were not de-
The average revivalst Of to-day. though in
with the ,psstorste Of an importsnt church,
He shouts: he claps his hands he is In inces.
SAINT motion; he is like an actor In melo-
feens. and rarely mssss e an appeal to the
reason or the will
His sermons consi.t Of strings Of anecdotes
are trivial, worthless. and often profane. and.
when applied to Jesus snd His salvation as
There seems to be hundreds OF these pro-
is revlysIi ct, making their LYING IN
be, / meption this not simply. nor chiefly. to
critiei.e these men and their methods, but to
deed II the sue coss Of the Church Of Christ was
different from thoss em pIoy red By Him and His
apostles. ! do not believe IL
rSc s ~ 81 snS
thus continued
we have had no revival in the ordinary
excitement; no appeals to this feelings. and
mo mei9 S no creole Snsrtets; no Easel;
H' 70 move to tesrs. anu
The result would seem to show that these
things are not really necesssry 70 m9ye men
continued the old m ethods. and above all have
continued to preach what some OF these move
ments set aside as antiquated.
We preach that men are not Christians be-
cause they have been greatly moved by song
about their dead mothers beautiful hands, or
the story OF an escape from prairie IRE. but
because their reasons and experiences have
taught them the damnation OF life and the
need Of doliverer.. while their wills have ac-
cepted as that deliverer,. Jesus Christ, and
yielded themselves In penitence and obedienoe
to Him
We preach real Church. not a mere COL
lection OF men and women. assembling yester-
day. auarreling to-day. and disbanding to-
morrow, but a holy Catholic kingdom into
which men COME as into divine society; into
which they are called to live the life OF God
and learn to doHis will Do not let u.s. infected
with this craze for spiritual novelty and reig-
fous bargains, go wandering of from the ways
which God has appointed for us to walk In"