The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-11-17
and consolation to the bereaved. =
NOT MEETING THE CTTY'S NEEDS

ana consolation to the bereaved. .
NOT MEETING THE CITY'S NEEDS
Amid vet no one can take even a sur
race view of things without seeing that
during all these centuries the church has
failed to meet and overcome the press
ing evils of the city.
I'm the first place: The masses do not
go to the churches, and they are more
! and more drifting therefrom / ann told
that some time ago the figures showed
that one in every eight persons in the
great city of London attended the House
OF God; while to-day it is but one out of
every twenty. Think of it, % persons out
of every 100 i'm the worlds metropolis
do not darken the doors of amy place of
| worship.
"A few months ago a gentleman who
mad previously known New York city
very we'll found he had Sunday to spend
therein. 1t was a beautiful day and, so
the Thought came to him to visit few
churches and see for himself how they
We're attended. At church time he left
the hotel, and said to himself it will not
be faar to take the uptown churches as
| many of their members are out of the
city. j will take those that are here
among the native born population. he
visited Methodist, Baptist, Presbyter-
ian, Episcopahan, and Dutch Reformed
church buildings. On some he read
CLOSED for the MONTH While the main
audience roOm of Others was closed, but
service held i'm the chapel adjoining. In
several he found but handful OF people,
and by actual county % i'm ONE, ~ IN
another, scarcely one with 100 worship
~
pers in. They looked deserted. Seventy
five each would be above the average.
But the people We're all around the
churches; as many young men and young
women passed ON their wheels within
ten minutes as all with. The parks were
filed; every trolley car crowded; the Ter
ries We're packed with people, while the
pleasure boats were endangered by the
mass of humanity which they earned.
Looking upon one of these three-decKed
boats and there We're many such, hound
for Coney Island he said that one boat
had ON it as many people as were IN all
the protestant churches in New York on
that Sunday morning.
In the next place the increase to our
city churches lis so meagre as to raise
the question: How long can the church
es live at this poor dying rate?
An examination of the Year Book of
the different denominations present a
pitiabe array of figures for the city
churches. Many churches give no addi-
lions whatever. 0.hers have a solitary one
to their credit At the present ratio. in
proportion to our gains and membership
it takes about one pastor and twenty
members whole year to produce a SIM
gle convert The Methodists are lament
ing their losses The Congregationalists
north are doing the same and the Bap-
lists have nothing of which to boast.
The cities of the world never had so
many rnsaved persons In them as they
have today. And there are churches
that have so far forgotten their mission
that they make no effort to evangelize the
city. They do not desire the peopi" to
crowd within their gates; there are Soclai
barriers which stand i'm the way. 1t can
not be said of them: The rich and loor
meet together, and they exhibit the spiHt
of the man who said: Why should / 10
anything for posterity; what has posteTity
ever done for me?
RIO meet the oity's need the church
must take broader view of her mission.
and see that her work provides for the
whole man-body, soul and spirit.
It mmst not be above its mission. hut
identify itself with the people, adopting
as it's Gllle the old pagan motto: What
ever concerns man concerns me-
It must be TRUE to its mission No
place must be too low for its mfniStra-
tionS'