St. Tammany farmer., 1899-12-23
short. Condensation is demanded by
the age in which we live. No more need


newspapers, and there was little travel
from place to place, and people would
sit and listen two and q half hours to
religious discourse, and Seventeenth
ly" would find them fresh and chipper.
In those days there was enough time
for a man to take an hour to warm him
self up to the subject and an hour to
cool Off But what was necessity then
is superfiuity now. Congregations
are full of knowledge from books. from
newspapers. from rapid and continu-
Gus intercommunication and long dis
quisitions of what they know already
win not be abided. If a religious teach
er cannot compress what he wishes to
say to the people in the space of As min
utes, better adjourn it to some other
day.
The trouble is we preach audiences
into a Christian frame. and then we
preach them out of it. We forget that
every auditor has SO much capacity OF
attention, and when that is exhausted
he is restless. That accident on the
Long Island railroad years ago came
from the fact that the brakes were out
of order. and when they wanted TO stop
the train they could not stop, and hence
the casualty was terrific. In all reli
gious discourse we want locomotive
power and propulsion. We want at the
same time stout brakes to let down at
after hearer has comprehended the
whole subject to hear man say: "Now
TO recapitulate," and "a few words by
way of application" and '.Once more"
and "Finally," and "Now 10 conclude"
Paul preached until midnight, and
Eutychus got sound asleep and fell out
Of a window and broke his neck. Some
would say: Good for him." l would
rather be sympathetic, like Paul, and
resuscitate him. That accident is often
quoted now in religious circles as
warning against somnolence in church.
1t is just as much warning to minis
ters against prolixity. Eutychus was
wrong in his somnolence. but Paul
made mistake when he kept on until
midnight. He ought to have stopped
at IL o'clock. and there would have been
no accident. If Paul might have gone
on to toe great a length, let all those
of US who are now preaching the Gospel
remember that there is limit to reli-
gious discourse, or ought to be, and
that in our time we have no apostolic
power of miracles. Napoleon in an adj
dress of seven minutes thrilled his
army and thrilled Europe. Christ's SER
mon on the mount. the model sermon,
was less than is minutes long at ordi-
nary mode of delivery. 1t is not elec
tricity scattered all over the sky that
strikes, but electricity gathered into
thunderbolt and hurled, and it is not re-
ligious truth scattered over and spread
out over a vast reach of time, but re-
ligious truth projected in compact form
that flashes light upon the soul and
rives its indifference.
When the religious discourse of the
future arrives in this land and in the
Christian church the discourse which is
to arouse the world and startle the ma
tons and usher in the kingdom. it will
be a brief discourse. Hear ii. all theo-
logical students, all We just entering
upon religious work. all We men and
er departments are toiling for Christ
and the salvation Of immortals-brev-
ity. brevity.
But remark also that the religious
discourse of the future of which speak
will be a popular discourse. There are
those in these times who speak of a pop
ular sermon as though there must be
something wrong about it. AS these
critics are dull themselves, the world
gets the impression that a sermon is
good in proportion as it is stupid. Christ
was the most popular preacher the
world ever saw and, considering the
small number of the worlds popula-
tion, had the largest audiences ever
gathered. He never preached anywhere
without making great sensation. Peo
pie rushed out in the wilderness to hear
him reckless of their physical necessi-
ties. So great was their anxiety to
hear Christ that, taking no food with
them, they would have tainted and
starved had not Christ performed
and fed them. Why did so
many people take the truth at Christ's
hands? Because they all understood
it. He illustrated his subject by a hen
and her chickens, by bushel measure.
by handful of salt, by birds flight
and by lily's aroma. All the people
knew what he meant, and they focked
to Him. And when the religious dis
course of the future appears it will not
be Princetonian. not Rochesterian, not
Andoverian, not Middletonian, but Oil
practical. unique, earnest.
OF all the woes, wants.
sins and sorrows Of an auditory.
But when the exhortation or dis
course does come there will be thou
sand cleaning scimeters to charge on
it. There are in so many theological
professors telling young
men how to preach. themselves not
knowing how, and I am told that if a
young man in some of our theological
says anything quaint or
or unique faculty and students
fly at him and set him right and
him out and smooth him
down and chop him OF until he says ev-
.rything just as everybody else says it.
Oh. when the future religious discourse
Of the Christian church arrives all the
churches of Christ in our great cities
will be thronged! The world wants |
spiritual help. All who have buried
heir dead want comfort. All know |
themselves to be mortal and to be inn
Mortal. and they want to hear about |
he great future. tell you, my friends,
4 the people of our great cities who
have had trouble only thought they |
could get practical and sympathetic
help in the Christian church, there
would no, be q street in Washington or
New York or any other city which
would be passable on the Sabbath day |
I there were . church on it, for all the
people would press to that asylum Of
mercy. that great house Of comfort and
A mother with a dead babe in her
n