The Monitor-register., 1897-10-01

Another obstacle has been an inordi-
nate fear of criticism. The vast majority
of people singing in church never want
anybody else to hear them sing. Every
body is waiting for somebody else to do
his duty. If we all sang, then the mac
curacies that are evident when only a
few sing would be drowned out. God
asks you to do as well as you can, and
then if you get the wrong pitch or keep
wrong time he will forgive any de-
fciency of the ear and imperfection of
the voice. Angels will not laugh if you
should lose your place in the musical
scale or come in at the close a bar be-
hind. There are three schools Of sing
ing, I am told-the German school, the
Italian school and the French school of
singing. Now 1 would like to add a
fourth school, and that is the school of
Christ. The voice of a contrite, broken
heart, although it may not be able to
stand human criticism, makes better
music to Gods ear than the most artis-
tic performance when the heart is want
ing. God calls on the beasts, on the cat
tie, on the dragons, to praise him, and
we ought not to be behind the cattle
and the dragons.
Another obstacle in the advancement
of this art has been the no.
ton that this part Of the service could
be conducted by delegation. Churches
have said: ooh, what an easy time we
shall have! The minister will do the
preaching, and the choir will do the
singing, and we will have nothing to
do" And you know as we'll as I that
there are a great multitude of churches
all through this land where the people
are not expected to sing. The whole
work is done by a delegation of four or
SIX or ten persons, and the audience are
silent. In such a church in Syracuse an
old elder persisted in singing, and SO
the choir appointed a committee to 20
and ask the elder if he would not stop.
You know that in many churches the
choir are expected to do all the singing,
and the great mass of the people are ex-
pected to be silent, and if you utter
your voice you are interfering. In that
church they stand, the four, with opera
glasses dangling at their side, singing
"Rock of ages, cleft for me, with the
same spirit that, the night before on the
stage, they took their part in the
"Grande Duchesse" or "Don Clio
vanni."
My Christian friends, have we a
right to delegate to others the discharge
of this duty which God demands of us?
Suppose that four wood thrushes propose
to do all the singing some hight day
when the woods are ringing with bird
voices. 1t is decided that four wood
thrushes shall do all the singing of the
forest. Let all other voices keep silent.
How beautifully the four warblel 1t is
really fine music. But how long will
you keep the forest still? Why, Christ
would come into that forest and look
up, as he looked through the olives, and
he would wave his hand and say, "Let
everything that hath breath praise the
Lord" and, keeping time with the
stroke of innumerable wings, there
would be 5, 1000 bird voices leaping into
the harmony. Suppose this delegation
of musical performers were tried in
heaven. Suppose that four choice spirits
should try to do the singing of the up
per temple. Hush now, thrones and do
minions and principalitiesl David, be
still, though you were the "sweet sing
Ell of Israeli Paul, keep quiet, though
you have come to that crown of rejoic-
ingl Richard Baxter, keep still, though
this is the Saints Everlasting Restl''
Four spirits now do all the singing.
But how long would heaven be quiet?
How long? "Halleluiah!" would cry
some gloriied Methodist from under the
altar. "Praise the Lordf' would sing
the martyrs from among the thrones.
"Thanks be unto God, who giveth us
the ~victory!' a great multitude of re-
deemed spirits would cry-myriads of
voices coming into the harmony and the
LA, 900 breaking forth into one accla-
nation. Stop that loud singingl Stopl
Oh, no. They cannot hear me. You
might as well try to drown the thun-
der of the sky or beat back the roar of
the sea, for every soul in heaven has re-
solved to do its own singing. Alas, that
we should have tried on earth that
which they cannot do in heaven, and,
instead of joining all our voices in the
praise of the most high God, delegating
perhaps to unconsecrated men and wo-
men this most solemn and most delight
full service!