Worcester morning daily spy. (Worcester, Mass.) 1888-1898, 1898-01-07
REV. c. E. JEFFERSON.
Sketch of the Man Who May Be Pied
mont Church's Next Pastor

KEW ~ e UEF & N SONs
Sketch of the Man Who May Be Pied
mont Church's Next Pastor
The Congregationanst is writing up
some of the more prominent clergymen
of the Congregational faith, and in the
issue of the current week it has pic
ture and biographical sketch of Rev. G..
E. Jefferson of Chelsea, who is men
toned as likely to be invited tc fill the
vacant pastorate at Piedmont Church
in this city. When Mr.. Jefferson came
to Worcester to attend the New Year s
reception at Piedmont, it was In re-
spense to an invitation from Mr.. Hutch
ms, one Of the members of the church
committee. There was no arrangement
made with him at that time with refer
ence to call, but 1t is understood that
the next issue Of the Piedmont calendar
will contain notice of a church meet
ing to consider the expediency Of ex-
tending a pastoral call to Mr.. jefferson.
Here is what the Congregationalist has
to say about him. 1t will be read with
especial interest, in view Of the prob
ability that he may become pastor of
one of WorceSters largest and strong
est churches.
can Ohioan by birth and trained in
an Ohio college-the Wesleyan Univer-
sity, of which DR. Bashford is now presi-
dent-Mr. Jefferson has the breadth
and freedom and energy that were once
called western. In spite of his youth
for the man is but 81, and has been
10 years out of the divinity school of
Boston University-he showed at the
beginning of his pastorate a talent for
practical administration. He Is by ma
ture the executive ager-cool4h ead-
ed, far-seeing, planning large enter
prises reaching over long series of
years He would have succeeded as a
business man, or had he not turned
away in disgust from the study of law,
made name as jurist.
THE basis of such splendid platform
ability is the most laborious and pains
taing intellectual preparation = the
preparation not only of the sermon, but
of the preacher himself as well. Never
in all the 10 years of his passionate has
Mr.. Jefferson once depended upon
written notes in public address. And
yet The constantly writes. Amateur au-
thorship Is his avocation He has no
otner. And this avocation Is itself a
scholarly pursuit He spent his leisure
hours for four years writing a history
of England, and he is now engaged upon
a history of our own country For a
long time he used to devote 30 minutes
every day to writing an article on some
theme of current interest for that ina
g1nary periodical which ne calls the
greatest magazine in the world Litera-
ture is his constant study Every year
he reads Shakspere, reads him aloud. to
acquire versatility of expression and
dignity of style. Modern poets find a
large place in his "Reminiscences
browning, Emerson and Lowell are his
faVoriteS
Next after poetry, Mr.. Jefferson
places biography, and among biog-
raphies he prefers those of Robertson,
Maurice, Dean Stanley, Charles Kings
ley, Bushnell and DR.. Samuel johnson,
which he has read and reread unt;i
uney have become part of himself.
Then comes the study of history. par
ticularly that of England. History and
rhetoric, the best Of both, he loves to
weave together And yet in the pulpit,
with all his wealth of broad and accu-
rate scholarship, he Is never the pedant
never distinctly the man of letters
he preaches-he is not content to lee
ture. His scholarship is laid under
contribution. 1t is not allowed to rob
the sermon. The message Is supreme
orator though he Is, you go away for
getting that the man has astonished
you with display of finished rhetoric.
Artist though he is, you go away for
getting that he has pleased YOU. But
what In genuine gratitude you remen-
Der, and indeed cannot forget, is the
service he has done you, for while that
young man was speaking you got
nearer view of God, a larger conception
or truth, finer enthusiasm for duty.
''Doctrinally, Mr.. Jefferson is a man
of his time, liberal and progressive, yet
his preaching shows no trace of the
common mania for theological refor-
nation. He is Bible preacher. His
sermons are mainly expositions of
Scripture He breaches whole series,
taken, every one of them, out of the
holy book. When he has something to
say upon higher criticism, he puts his
thoughts into a lecture. When he
wants to show the harmony between
evolutionary philosophy and Christian
theology he takes some other place and
time than the pulpit and the Sunday
service. He must preach Jesus Christ
and his righteousness, and not be
drawn aside into other themes.
While Mr.. Jefferson's preaching is a
surprise, a seeming contradiction of
his temperament and scholarship and
theological interests, the man back of
the preaching is, nevertheless, thor
oughly self-consistent. His leading
traits, intellectually, are method and
persistence.
But the just estimate of Mr.. Jeffer-
sons success lies rather in the story
of his 10 years pastorate in Chelsea
than in any attempted analysis of his
homiletic or administrative genius.
When Mr.. Jefferson came to the Central
Church, raw theologue just out of the
seminary, he found society of Alb
The church has now men,
bership Of 100, and this astonishing
gain has been made in the midst of a
shifting population. The community
has all the while been changing, and
the change is not of the sort to make
church work easy or promising. The
Central Church loses 40 or so members
every year by removals from the city.
Nevertheless, Mr.. Jefferson has accom-
plished a work of splendid dimensions
under these very circumstances. Nor
is his success in any respect the result
of illegitimate means. Though placed
in particularly trying field, he never
has descended to ensationalism. Adj
vertising he regards as an unwarranta-
BILE violation of good taste. With
high ideal of his calling, an unfiagging
devotion to the task before him and
genuine love for his people. Mr.. Jeffer-
son has simply preached Christ in such
language as found mems hearts and
with such manly earnestness as in
spired mems highest purposes. The re-
suit is Gods doing"