The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-03-14
BUILDING
CHURCHES.
Rev. Mr.. Hoods Sermon
at Pilgrim Church.
NECESSITY FOR CHURCHES
rhe First Hope Of Success For MS
siOnsry EndeavOrs.
NECESSITY FOR CHURCHES
REVIVAL FOLLOWS BUILDING

Rev. George A. Hood, New England
Field Secretary of the Congregational
Church building society, spoke yesterday
morning In the Pilgrim Congregational
Church and In the evening in the Plym-
outh Congregational Church on the
worg that society is doing. Taking as
his text Arise, then and build ye the
sanctuary Of the Lord God, he said that
ever since God built the tabsrpacle in the
wilderne ess every religion was Obliged to
have it's church, and every false religion
its { mple CongTegatioLalists organize
about 200 churches every year and build
but about 100 church buildings.
Our young men developing the new
towns are eodipped with docks, elevators,
mills, machinery and every Improvement
for uoing their work six days OF the
week. will they 20 to churcn the inst
day OF the week in an abandoned saloon,
or dance hall, carpenter shop or the
loft of livery stable: No, 1t makes
them komssi,k, they have no respect for
church which cannot build, and they can-
not afford $25 or $50 To be p it build. The
church, like any other line Of business,
needs an equipment TO succeed. II we
can ard the young church 10 build the
new settlers Will attend, Will give %
cents or 81 or 81 per week TO make iJ self
supporting: and the future character of
the new town can be moulded py the
church building society helps the young
churches Of the Congregational Home
Missionary Society and of the American
Missionary Association among the dark
races.
We aid them by three funds; the grant
fund, the loan fund ana the parsonage
loan fund. The money is paid back to
te used over and over, the loans every
Hva van ha u
leetiops. Every dollar is secured by tirst
mortgage and insurance policy therefore,
there Il no loss Tho aid pays only last
bills, therefore the missionary church
will be ont Of debt. The society hes al
ways paid every dollar whsn due, there
fore donors to the annuity fund are sure
of their annuity.
Why do they need hslpt Because n
church building costs four or five times
as much as tie missionarys salary;
where the Home Missionary Society helps
pay the minister, economy and SUCCESS
demand that the Church Building So
ciety should te BILE TO give much larger
aid cn the building. Because TO convert
open prairies or empty woods into a town
Is hard for the first settlers; with farms
and homes mortgaged interest and taxes
high, slan les To live in usually at rirst
no partitions, no plaster or paint, no cel-
lar or well; snow drifts inside when they
morning = the people cannot build
churches without aio. But they give won
derfully.
A missionary church has Its first hope
OF success when IL gets building, and
it cannot build without aid. II not aided
the churches will die. or II they live 1t
will be ONLY by asking continued aid
from the Hons Missionary so1iety. One
home missionary superintendent said his
church would live only two years without
n building. Large numbe of our
churches have died from this cause and
$50 now are homeless and hoJ ess, for a
church without building is like an egg
without a shell the more it is trooded
the worse condition 1t is in. Wren a
church dies IL damages the moral future
OF the new town and loses the Christian
workers end riches OF the future.
Ii We aid a church 10 build. revival
follows soon, and many Eastern young
men are saved In this way in the nav
town. new life, new habits. A Minnesota
church took home missionary aid for i3
years without sign of success, but when
the Church Building Society gave it 5000
O. pay last bills on $1,000 church a re.
viyai began with the dedication and Ii
young men were converted.
Then comes self-support. One Mime
s1ta ohurcA expG cted every year for six
wears TO throw OF home missionary laid the
xth year il had $500 aid from che Church
nuildine society on $4,000 churcn, and
has been self supporting ever since. A
good way 10 save home missionary money
but whv cuuldn't the Church Building
Society have aided that chur sb five years
before and saved $3.50 homs missionary
money! For lack OF money. In north
Wisconsin seven new churches were aided
To build about the same lime; In tour
yea = six CT them were selfsupporting.
often the Church Building Society has
- cut down the application of church,
fIrti II &, hard struggle 10 pay up;