The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1896-09-29
REV. DIR. WATS0N'S LECTURE
FIRST IN THE LYMAN BEECHER
COURSE DELIVERED YESTERDAY.

Sermon-Reception to DR.. and Mrs. Wat
son Last Evening-subject of To-day's
Lecture.
The College street music hall was
yesterday afternoon packed with a
large audience to hear the first of the
series Of nine in the Lyman Beecher
lectures to be delivered to the students
of the divinity school by Rev DR.. Wat
son, who is famous as Ian Maclaren,"
author of Beside the Bonny Brier
Bush" Long before o'clock, the hour
at which the lecture was to begin,
every seat in the commodious hall was
occupied, and many who were unable
to obtain seats were standing UP near
the entrance. When DR.. Watson, ac-
companied by Prof. Fisher of the Yale
divinity school, stepped upon the plat
form he was greeted with loud APP
plause. Prof. Fisher presided at the
meeting, and after the audience had
sung hymn he introduced DR.. Wat
son in a few well chosen remarks.
As DR.. Watson rose, he presented a
splendid figure, tall, we'll proportional
a fine specimen of physical manhood
/ Prolonged applause burst forth when
the eminent clergyman stepped to the
| front of the platform, and it was some
| time before the applause ceased so
| that he could begin to speak. Then
suddenly all was silent, and the drop
ping Of a pin could have been heard.
The audience was one we'll worthy of
| this university city and one with which
the most distinguished Englishman
might well be pleased. Nearly all the
clergymen Of the city were present,
large numbers of professors from va
rious departments of the university;
and, in fact, the entire audience was one
of the most intelligent, which, 1t is safe
to say, could be gathered together in
! this country On the platform with
| DR.. Watson were the members of the
divinity school faculty and DR.. Nun
ger of the United church.
In beginning his lecture DR.. Watson
thanked the audience for it's kind well
come to him and said that as it was the
| first public welcome he had received in
this country he took it as an omen
| Of his reception by other audiences
which he would address on this side of
| the water He very modestly said that
| it seemed strange to him why, after
| such eminent men had lectured at Yale,
| there should be a desire to hear an or
binary man.
| The subject of the first lecture of the
| series was 1.-THE Genesis of a Sermon"
| The lecturer said that good sermon
was the result of six processes; name
| ly, selection, separation, enumeration,
meditation, elaboration and revision.
He discussed the ways in which differ
| ent ministers arrive at their texts.
| The proper way for this to be done, he
said, for the preacher, having some
thing to say, to set about and say it,and
not wait for an inspiration. AS mat
| ter of fact, he said that the preacher
| does not select the text, but the text the
preacher.
| There is a. long standing connection
| between the text and the man, pre-
established harmony. What he does
now is simply to note the truth down,
| the text. He had better put down six
| pages, if that is all he knows of the
| truth. than a volume which Is not real
| ly the truth. When a man tells what
| he knows there begins the courtship
between him and the truth. Thorough
| knowledge instead of fleeing fancy
| should be there before he and the SER
mon shape their paths together. If a
| man means to write a manuscript ser
mon he can do it In a day; if to think a
sermon it will take him ten years. We
| can never expect mature and balanced
| work from young man. Young men S
| speech will always be g. little yeastv.
| The moment you begin to deal with an
| idea you find it has ninty-nine relations
| and the hard process is to separate it
| from those relations. When you keep
| all of them clustered together 1t is like
| having all your wife's relatives around
| you Young men will find, until they
reach middle age, that they will be
embarrassed to find that they cannot
deal with one idea alone. A rife shot
will KILL but small shot peppers, and il
is no use to pepper a congregation
| Some men can preach without a single
idea, some have cannon full and 9TH
ers have one idea, realizing that it is
this one.
Some mems minds are too brilliant
for practicability, and 1t would be vel
for brilliant people to remember that
a modified light Is the better light
Many sermons are original brilliant
and eloquent, but there is no spiritua
| connection between them and the man
The trouble to-day is that people arc
sensational, SNOWY, and we have lost
much of the depth of the spiritua
strength of the old preachers
The lecture was extremely interest
ing and was interspersed with keer
humor, the beauty of which was great.
ly enhanced by the light Scotch dialect
of the speaker. Frequently during the
lecture DR.. Watson was greeted with
applause. AT the conclusion of the ad.
dress Mrs. Watson was introduced tc
several of the ladies present A recep-
ton in honor of DR.. and Mrs. Watson
was given by Professor Fisher at his
residence last evening.
The lectures will be given every af.
ternoon this week at 8 o'clock, except
Saturday afternoon, when there will be
no lecture, and the first four days OF
next week.
The subject of the lecture to be Civ.
en- this afternoon will be 1.-THE Tech.
nique of a Sermon