Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1897-09-27
THE POWER OF MUSIC
IMPORTANCE OF CONGREGATIONAL
SINGING IN CHURCHES.


stacles.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 26.-Dr. Talmage
in this discourse rallies the churches to
more hearty congregational singing and
calls upon instruments of music to join
in the praise of God. The text is II
Chronicles V, IS, cit came even to pass,
as the trumpeters and singers were as
one, to make one sound to be heard i'll
praising and thanking the Lord. -
The temple was done. 1t was the
very chorus Of all magnifcence and
pomp. SpIendor crowded against SPLEEN
dor It was the diamond necklace Of
the earth. From the huge pillars crown
ed with leaves and flowers and rows Of
pomegranate wrought out in FURNISHED
metal down even to the tongs and
snuffers made out of pure gold every
thing was as complete as the God direct
ed architect could make it. 1t seemed
as if a vision from heaven had alighted
on the mountains The day for dedica-
ton came Tradition says that there
were in and around about the temple Oh
that day 200, 600 silver trumpets 40, 600
harps, 40, 000 timbrels and 200, 600
singers, so that all modern demOnstra-
tons at Dusseldorf or Boston seem
nothing compared with that AS this
great sound surged up amid the precious
stones of the temple it must have seem
ed like the river CT life dashing against
the amethyst of the wall of heaven.
The sound arose, and God, as if TO show
that he was we'll pleased with the Dlu-
sic which his children make in all ages
dropped into the midst of the temple q
cloud Of glory SO OverpOwering that tie
officiating priests were obliged 60 step
in the midst Of the services.
Sacred Music.
There has been much discussion as to
where music was born. I think that at 4
the beginning, ''when the morning stars
sang together and all the sons Of God
shouted for joy" the earth heard the
echo The cloud on which the angels
stood to celebrate the creation was the
birthplace Of song. The stars that slit
ter at night are only SO many keys Of
celestial pearl Oh which Gods fingers
play the music CT the spheres. mani
mate nature is full Of Gods stringed
and wind Instruments Silence Itself
perfect silence-is only q musical rest
in Gods great anthem of worship.
Wind among the leaves. insect hum
ming in the summer air, the rush of
billow upon beach, the ocean far out
sounding its everlasting psalm, the
bobolink On the edge Of the forest, the
quail Whistling up from the grass, are
music. While visiting Blackwells
island ! heard, coming from window
of the lunatic asylum, a very sweet
song. It was sung by one who had lost
her reason, and have come to believe
that even the deranged and disordered
elements CT nature would make music
TO our ear If we only lad acuteness
enough to listen. | suppose that even
the sounds in nature that are discOrdant !
and repulsive make harmony in Gods !
ear You know that you may come so |
near to an orchestra that the sounds are
painful instead of pleasurable, and I |
think that we stand SO near devastating
storm and fri9htful whirlwind we can
not hear that which makes to Gods ear
and the ear Of the spirits above US q
music as complete as 1t is tremendous.
[ propose to speak about sacred music, !
first showing you its Importance and |
then stating some Of the obstacles to it's
advancement.
OLttN tEG EISj dry uILeuG 4OE tliG III !
portance of sacred music from the fact
that God commanded it. Through Paul
he tells Us to admCnish che another III
psalms and hymns and spiritual songs
Through David he cries out, ''Sing We |
to God, all ye kingdoms Of the earth. -
And there are hundreds of other pas
sages I might name, proving that it is
as much a mans duty to sing as it is
his duty to pray. Indeed l think there |
are more commands in the Bible to sing
than there are to pray. God not only
asks for the human voice, but for the
instruments of music. He asks for the
cymbal and the harp and the trumpet
And l suppose that in the last days of
the church the harp, the lutte, the trum-
pet and all the instruments of music
that have given their chief Raid to the
theater and bacchanal, will be brought
by their masters and laid down at the
feet of Christ and then sounded in the
church's triumph on her way from suf-
fering into glory. praise ye the Lordr'
Praise him with your voices. Praise |
him with stringed instruments and with
organs.
Secular Music.
/ draw another argument for the i'm
portance of this exercise from the i'm
pressiveness of the exercise You know
something of what secular music has
achieved. You know it has made its i'm
preston upon governments, upon laws,
upon literature, upon whole genera
lions. One inspiring national air is
worth 80, 900 men as a standing army.
There comest "a time in the battle when
10 &c 1 T,,
the earlier part of our civil war the |
government proposed to economic in
bands of music, and many of them were