Connecticut western news., 1899-11-23
Short SerrNOnh.

the age in which we live. No more need of long introductlons and long ap- plications and so many divisions to a discourse that it may be said to be hydra headed In other days men got all their information from the pulpit. There were few books, and there were no newspapers and there was little travel from place to place, and people would sit and listen two and half hours to religious discourse, and ''seventeenthly" would find them fresh and chipper. In those days there was enough time for man to take an hour to warm himself up to the subject and an hour to cool off But what was a necessity then is a superfuity now. Congregations are full of knowledge from books, from newspapers, from rapid and continuous intercommunica- ton and long disquisitions of what tley know already will not be abided. If a religious teacher cannot compress what he wishes to say to the people in the space of 45 minutes, better adjourn it to some other day.
 Tie trouble is we preach audiences into 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 religious discourse we want locomotive power and propulsion. We want at the same time stout brakes to let down at the right instant. It is dismal thing, after q nearer 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 to conclude"
 Paul preached until midnight, and Eutychus got sound asleep and fell out of window and broke his neck. Some would say, Good for him." I would rather be sympathetic, like Paul, and resuscitate him. That accident is often quoted now in religious circles as warning against somnolence in church.
 
 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 II o'clock, and there would have been no accident. If Paul might have gone on to too great length, let all those of us who are now preaching the gospel remember that there is a limit to re- ligious discourse, or ought to be, and that in our time we have no apostolic power of miracles. Napoleon in an ad- dress of seven minutes thrilled his army and thrilled Europe. Christs sermon on the mount, the model ser mon, was less than IS minutes long at ordinary mode of delivery. It is not electricity scattered all over the sky that strikes, but electricity gathered into a thunderbolt and hurled, and it is not religious truth scattered over and spread out over a vast reach of time, but religious truth projected in com pact form that flashes light upon the soul and rives its indifference.
 Popular Discourses.
 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 nations and usher in the kingdom, it will be brief discourse. Hear it, all theological students, all ye just enter ing upon religious work, all ye men and women who in Sabbath schools and other departments are toiling for Christ and the salvation of immortals -brevity, brevity!
 But remark also that the religious discourse of the future of which l speak will be popular discourse. There are those in these times who speak of popular 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, con- sidering the small number of the worlds population, had the largest au- dience ever gathered He never preach ed anywhere without making a great sensation. People rushed out in the wilderness to hear him reckless of their physical necessities. So great was their anxiety to hear Christ that, taking no food with them, they would have tainted and starved had not Christ performed a miracle and fed them. Why did so many people take the truth at Christ's hands? Because they all understood 1t. He illustrated his subject by hen and her chickens, by bushel measure, by a 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 discourse of the future appears it will not be Princeto- nian, not Rochesterian, not Andoverian, not Middletonian, but Olivetic-plain, practical, unique, earnest, comprehen- siye of all the woes, wants, sins and sorrows of an auditory.
 But when that exhortation or dis course does come there will be thou sand gleaming scimiters to charge on it. There are In so many theological seminaries professors telling young men how to preach, themselves not knowing how, and I am told that if youliS Ihdu III SOIlc ol oul LhCOiOSiNdl seminaries says anything quaint or thrilling or unique faculty and stu dents fly at him and set him right and straighten him out and smooth him down and chop him off until he says everything just as everybody else says it. Oh, when the future religious dis course 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 their dead want comfort All know themselves to be mortal and to be immortal, and they want to hear about the great future. I tell you, my friends, if the people of our great cities who have had trouble only thought they could get practical and sympa-