The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-05-11
ALL MEN PREACHERS
The Rev. Claude Raboteau
Tells How Everyone Can
Spread the Gospel.
EACH VOCATION A PULPIT
Nothing But the Most Stirring
Sensation, He Says, Can Arouse
the Public These Days.

The Rev. Claude Raboteau preached
last evening in the Parmly Memorial Bap-
tist Church on .The Pulpit and the Pub
lic." His text was, ssAnd He commanded
US to preach unto the people
The preacher who is sincere and hon
est" he said, receives his credentials to
preach from God. That God did not in
tend all to be preachers is evident. True,
our Lord did mean all of his followers to
preach his Gospel, but they were not all
to preach it in the same way. They were
not to mount the rostrum and become pub
lie speakers, else the church would have
always been what it is unfortunately
sometimes, al preachers and no laymen.
Some are to preach the Gospel by the
dignity of quiet Christian life The
merchant who breaches Christ by an
upright holy life in his business is just
as much a preacher as the person with
diploma and Reverend tackled on to him.
The unobtrusive,s quiet Christian life do
ing Gods will and living His word is just
as mucha proclaimer Of the truth Of tha
living God as the pulpit orator with stem
torian voice and a cascade of rhetoric
who are we that distinguished between
the callings of God? All callings are alike
sacred in His sight If a man is called
preaching Christ by the gospel of work
If aInan is called to fit like mote in
the sunshine. filling very tiny place in
the world, if he does it to the glory Of
God he is preaching Christ by the gospel
of contentment.
IF man is called to be lawyer and
graces his profession by his skin and use
prevarications, he is preaching Christ by
the gospel of truthfuinesS under trying
eircumst tances.
'If a man is called to be Journalist OF
an editor and he has sufficient brain and
character to be beneficent factor in mod
ern life, he is preaching Christ by the
IN an editorial chair and is man in the
highest sense-not a lump of clay in a
swivel chair-not barking dog-that runs
at the sight of a pop-gun-not a conceited
fellow whose editorials suggest bran and
s2Wdust-out a man. whose aim it is to
educate. refine and purify society. has as
as the minister of the Gospel.
Robes do not make the priest, for
ordinary man.. sometimes very ordinary
at that-sometfnes far below par The
laying on of the hands does not make the
priest, If he has not the spiritual graces
more rubs and hard knocks than any In
the, world, he need not be surprised if
he be quickly relegated to the shades OF
obscurity or move his quarters off to the
Lonelyville' parish.
Nothing short OF the most stirring sen-
satfon will ever get hold of the interest
of the .lethargic public in these closing
years of the Nineteenth Century Sensa-
ton in the highest. sense sensation like
that which the Apostle Paul created
when he turned the world upside down
With his vigorous preaching. We are
afraid of that. term when applied to the
pulpit. We think it means some clerical
mountebank who by his idiosynerasies
passes off twaddle as common sense. [
regret to say that the high standard of
the pulpit has often been lowered by these
kinds of sensationalists. But the sensa-
tion mean is avigor and fire that rattles
the very bones of society; that takes the
glorious banner from Jesus. unfurls ft
valiantly, and with the heroisn of true
soldier and waves It Loyalty before the
hostile army of sin and the devil.
ITO preach this Gospel with loving Hips
and active hearts and fertile minds; to
presnt its ramifications that enter into
every phase of life; to make it modern.
to make it real; to make it inviting; to
make it eternally necessary to the soul of
men; may God give us the power as pssa-
tor and people,"