The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1895-12-26

The beautiful Episcopal church of St.
John on West Adams street never looked
more beautiful than it did yesterday. with
it's chaste and ornamental decoration of
palms, holly berries, smilax and ivy. Deli
cate festoons of ivy ornamented the
sanctuary apse with wreath of cyprus
suspended from the ceiling to the side
walls. The rood-screen was handsomely
latticed with strings of smilaN with base
of ivy. Umbrella ferns, ivy and holly
berries festooned the beam of the rood
screen. On either side of the church were
enormous punches of bamboo, covering
the whole side of the church. The unique
fireplace was festooned with cyprus and
holly berries. The font was twined and
wreathed with delicate sprays of smilax.
The vases IN the altar and at the foot of
the rood-screen were filled with Gala Ill
lies, ferns and Vintoor. Two handsome
dossal wings hanked the altar which was
brilliantly lighted by the sanctuary stand
ards and the eucharistic lights. Alto
gether the effect was not only pleasing and
artistic, but reverent and devotional.
At the low celebration at z o'clock, the
Rev. HendersoIr-JIdd celebrated III hand
some cloth of gold chasuble. There was a
large number present at this service.
At the high celebration the rector, the
Rev. B. W. r. Tayler, celebrated and
preached to congregation that completely
filled the edifice. His text was from He
brews: /, 12: "God who at sundry times
and in divers manners spaIe in times
past unto the fathers by the prophets
but in these last days speaks to us by his
Son.
1--WE must not suppose said the
preacher, that, when the Almighty Creator
brought design out of chaos and set in or
der the delicately adjusted mechanism, of
the universe, that he left it all to take care
Of ifcalf an6 hold hirncoIf oil II
evolution and development. He never.
at any time, deemed the creation mis-
take, to correct which mistake it was
necessary for him 10 ordain an event
which was not originally in his eternal pur-
poses. The coming of Jesus Christ into
the world, with all that his life involved,
was no after thought. II was but the COM
bination of plan which the love of God
had determined upon, whereby he should
become manifested in human flesh and be
tabernacled among men.
All through his intercourse with the
children of men, all through the many
revelations of himself to the prophets and
seers, we can detect the promise that there
should come at last fuller revelation,
which should be made in the fullDess of
time. when the world was ready and ripe
for his decentralization in the person of
Jesus Christ.
There have been many revelations of
you W IneH given through the prophets
and seers of pre-Christian times, but they
all differ materially from that revelation
which he has in these last days given To us
by his Son.
1t is not an unfamiliar thing to hear
certain class of preachers and speakers
put together in one category the names of
Buddha, Confuscius, Plato, Socrates, SEN
eca, Moses. Elijah and Jesus Christ.
In a very plausible and patronizing way
they speak of them as the world reform
ers, who preached and lived the golden
rule. Bat we as Christians and believers
in the incarnation of Jesus Christ, must
lift the name of our blessed Savior COM
pletely out of that category. The word
was made flesh and dwet among us, and
we beheld His glory; the glory as of the
only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth. That is the doctrine which
Christmas day enshrines and which Chris.
tianity stands for"
The music, which was under the direc-
ton of Frederic Stevenson, the organist
and choir-master Of ST. Johns, was fully
up to the well known excellent standard
attained at that church.
In the evening the service was fully
choral, c. A. Robinson singing as an offer
tory, with magnificent effect, the bass solo
Nazareth.