The Portland daily press., 1894-12-10
PRESIDENT GALLAGHER.

His Sermon at Congress Street Methodist
Church Touches on the Topics of the
Hour.
Rev. DR.. Gallagher, president of Kent's
Hill Seminary and Ladies' College, occupied
the pulpit of Congress street church yes er-
day afternoon. After the preliminary SER
vices, conducted by Rev. Mr.. Lindsay, DR..
Gallagher vas introduced. Mr.. Lindsay re-
ferring to the fact that oa his last visit he
was accompanied by violent snow storm.
DR.. Gallagher said that he did not consider
himself storm centre, even if storm fol-
lowed him to Portland. He then proceeded
TO give a sketch of the institution that he
represents. He claimed that the men and
women graduated by the college were men
and women in the true sense Of the word :;
that 81, ,000 students have attended the semi
nary. and they are numerous in churches
and confer iences, and he urged donations to
the institution sums from one dollar to a
hundred thousand.
The doctor then took for his text Geneses
XVIII, l6 and II: And Jacob awaked
ont of his sleep and said, surely the Lord Is
in this place, and knew it not. And he
was afraid and said how dreadful is this
place this is none other but the house of
God, and his is the gate of heaven" Dr..
Gallagher began by reading the story of
Isaac sending Jacob to his uncle's to get r
wife from the daughters of Canaan, and
how Jacob on the way dreamed, and what
the dream was. He then showed that Gods
lesson to Jacob, as told in the dream,
teaches US these two lessons.
First, that God and heaven are never re-
mote from the abodes and hearts of His
people. Our thoughts, our hymns, are full
of the idea of the remoteness of God and
the lesson taught by God is that He is
never remote to the one who calls upon
Him. The object of the Bible is to. bring God
nearer to man. Men in trouble are depressed,
and desire God and those who are at the
point of death fear God. But both are
wrong in the impression that he is absent
from them for he is always present. The
church in which we assemble is blessed by
the presence of God, and may aptly be
termed the gate of heaven. People speak
of the mysteries of the Bible. There are
mysteries everywhere. There are mysteries
about all parts of our bodies that none have
solved. You hold flower in our hands
and think you know all about it. its color,
shape, perfume. But back of what we know
about 1t is a power from whence it is de-
rived of which we virtually know nothing.
So the mother knows her child's features
and think she knows it thoroughly, but
what does she know of its fuller develop
ments telling of unseen power. Scientists
say that force keeps the stars in place.
Fshaw. Let us rather say it is God the
science of all living truth and beauty.
Byron said: ''1n the starry shades of night
l read the presence of another world.' It
is In the night that man more than at any
other time believes in the presence of the
Almighty. You say God is not there. How
do you know? The clouds obscure the sky,
and one says will We ever see this sun
again? But the sun is serenely riding
through the heavens back of the glowing
clouds. So God is always present full OF
love as in all ages.
Second, not only are God and heaven
about us, but He is also present to help us
God is a loving father and He will break
through heaven to Come to His children.
Do we deny that the Bible is divine? Then
we must shut out all history in order to
drive out this one of Gods most precious
gifts. If we cling to God we must deny