The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1899-11-16
\ HIS STEPS,
What Would Jesus D0?"
By CHARLES n. SHELDON.
Erighted and published in book form BY
Ee Advance Publishing Co. Of Chicago.1
By CHARLES N. SHELDON.
CONTINUED
w.

khe members Of the First church of
|mond has been 80 remarkable that,
|ou know. the attention of the whole
btry has been directed to the move
i ! call it movement because
the action taken today it seems
kable that what has been tried here
he First ahurch in Raymond will
kh out into the other churches and
Be a revolution in church methods.
more especially in a new definition
fhristian discipleship.
lin the first place, Maxwell tells me
|vas astonished ut the response made
lis proposition Some of the most
hinent members in the church made
promise to do as Jesus would.
Eng them were Edward Norman.
editor of The Daily News, which
made such a sensation in the news
|w world: Milton Wright, one Of
leading merchants in Raymond
lander Powers, whose action in the
Yer of the railroads against the in
hate commerce laws made such a
about a year ago; Miss Page, one
eaymond's leading society heiresses,
! has lately dedicated her entire for
!, rs ] understand. to the Christian
j paper and the work Of reform in
slum district known as the Rec
Ele, and Miss Winslow. whose repu-
|on as a singer is now national, but
J, in obedience to what she has de-
ID to be Jesus probable action. has
bted her talent to volunteer work
tng the girls and women who make
large part Of the citys worst and
b abandoned population.
|In addition to these well known
bio has been a gradually increasing
bber Of Christians from the First
|rch and lately from other churches
Raymond A large proportion of
s volunteers who pledge themselves
|o as Jesus would comes from the
beavor societies. The young people
that they have already embodied in
|r society pledge the same principle
|he words, 4 promise him that l will
Ne to do whatever he would have
do. This is not exactly what is in
He'd in Maxwell's proposition, which
hat the disciples shall try to do what
Us would probably do in the disci-
place, but the result Of an honest
dience to either pledge, he claims,
! be practically the same, and he is
surprised that the largest numbers
b joined the new discipleship from
Endeavor society.
am sure the first question you will
is, What has been the result of
attempt. what has it accomplished.
low has it changed in any way the
nlar course of the church or the COM
nityF
You already know something from
Drts of Raymond that have gone over
country what the results have been,
one needs to come here and learn
lething Of the changes in individual
s. and especially the change in the
rch life. to realize all that is meant
this following of Jesus steps SO lit
lly To tell all that would be to
to long story or series Of stories.
D not in a position to do that, but !
give you some idea perhaps Of what
happened here from what has been
me by my friends and Henry Max.
himself.
The result Of the pledge upon the
1t church has been twofold-it has
ught about q spirit Of Christian fel-
sAlp which Maxwell tells me never
Dre existed and which now impresses
as being very nearly what the
itian fellowship Of the apostolic
riches must have been, and it has
ided the church into two distinct
ups Of membera Those who have
taken tho pledge regard the others
oolishly literal in their attempts to
tate the example Of Jesus
Some Of them have drawn ont Of
church and no longer attend. or
: have removed their membership
rely to other churches Some are
internal element Of strife. and l
I'd rumors Of an attempt on their
I TO force Maxwell's resignation. l
not know that this element is very
ing in the church. It has been held
heck by q wonderful continuance of
ritual power. which dates from the
Sunday the pledge was taken a
z ago. and also by the fact that 80
ny Of the most prominent members
70 been identified with the move
1T
The effect on Henry Maxwell is
J marked I heard him preach at
state association four years ago. He
resssd me at the time as having
siderable power in dramatic deliv-
Of which he himself was somewhat
'cious. His sermon was well writ
and abounded in what the seminary
'ents used to call fine passages
effect Of 1t was what the average
gregation would call pleasing. This
ming I heard Maxwell preach again
the first time since then. I shall
lk Of that further on. He is not the
q man. He gives me the impression
me who has passed through crisis
evolution. he tells me this revolu-
Is simply o new definition Of Chris