The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1898-05-06

| IN SIX weeks. suppose there We're a
great war, and there were 800, 600 SOL
diers, but all of those 800, 600 soldiers ex-
cepting 10 men were in their tents or
securing their muskets or cooking ra-
tions. You would say, "Of course defeat
must come in that case. " 1t is worse than
that in the church. Millions Of the pro-
fessed soldiers Of Jesus Christ are cook
ing rations or asleep in their tents,
while only one man here and there goes
out to do battle for the Lord
But, says some one, 1--WE are es-
tablishing a great many missions, and
think they will save the masses. F" No
they will not Five hundred thousand
of them will not do it. They are doing
magnificent work, but every mission
chapel is confession of the disease and
weakness of the church. 1t is making a
dividing line between the classes. 1t is
saying to the rich and to the we'll con-
ditioned, "If you can pay your pew
rents, come to the main audience room. :"
1t is saying to the poor man. "Your
coat is too bad and your shoes are not
good enough. If you want to get to
heaven, you will have to go by the way
of the mission chapel" The mission
chapel has become the kitchen, where
the church does it's sloppy work. There
are hundreds and thousands Of churches
in this oountry-gorgeousl built and
upported-that, even on bright and sun.
shiny days, are not half full of wor-
shippers, and yet they are building mis-
sion chapels, because by some expressed
or implied regulation the great masses
of the people are kept out of the main
audience room.
Now say that any place of worship
which is appropriate for one class is APP
propriate for all classes. Let the rich
and the poor meet together, the Lord
the maker of them all. Mind you that [
say that mission chapels are a necessity,
the way churches are now conducted,
but may God speed the time when they
shall cease to be necessity. God will
rise up and break down the gates of the
church that have kept back the masses,
and woe be to those who stand in the
way They will be trampled under foot
by the vast populations making STAN
pede for heaven.
| saw in some paper an account of
church in Boston in which, it is said,
there were great many plain people.
The next week the trustees of that
church came out in the paper and said
it was not so at all; "they were elegant
people and highly conditioned people
that went there. " Then | laughed out
right, and when l laugh l laugh very
loudly. "Those people" said, "are
afraid of the siokly sentimentality of
the churches. Now, my ambition is
not to preach to you SO much. 1t seems
to me that you must be faring sumptu-
ously every day, and the marks of COM
fort are all about you. You do not need
the gospel half as much as do some who
never come here. Rather than be prid-
ing myself on a church in front of which
there shall halt so splendid equipages
on the Sabbath day, I would have
church up to whose gates there should
come long procession Of the suffering,
and the stricken, and the dying, beg
ging for admittance. You do not need
the gospel as much as they. You have
good things in this life. Whatever may
be your future destiny, you have had a
pleasant time here. But those dying
of which speak, by reason
of their want and suffering, whatever
may be their future destiny, are in per-
dition now, and if there be any COM
fort in Christ's gospel for Gods sake |
give it to them
Revolution! The pride of the church |
must come down. The exclusiveness of |
the church must come down. The fnan-
cial boastings of the church must come
down If monetary success were the |
chief idea in the church, then l say that !
the present mode of conducting finances |
is the best. If it is to see how many !
dollars you can gain, then the present |
mode is the best. But if it is the saving
IF souls from sin and death, and bring
ng the mighty populations of our cities
to the knowledge of God, then | cry,
RevolutiOnl 1t is coming fast. Ifeel it
n the air hear the rumbling of an
that shall shake down, in
me terrific crash, the arrogance of our
modern Christianity.
The sea is covered with wrecks and
are drowning. We come out
With the church lifeboat, and the peo-
Ile begin to Chamber in, and we shout:
Stop, stop! You must think it costs
lothing to keep liteboat. Those seats
It the Prov are 81 apiece, these in the
middle so cents, and those seats in the
tern 2 shillings. Please to pay up, or
Use founder on little longer till the
mission boat whose work it is to save
'ou penniless wretches, shall come along
nd pick you up. We save only first
lass sinners in this boat ="
The talk is whether Protestant
hurches or Roman Catholic churches
re coming out ahead. 1 tell you, Prot
stants this truth plainly, that until
our churches are as free as are the Ro-
nan Catholic cathedrals they will beat
ou. In their cathedrals the millionaire
nd the beggar kneel side by side. And
ntil that time comes in our churches
We cannot expect the favor of God or
ornament spiritual prosperity.
RpvOlutiOD II NAV no tbat boFo,o Al, !