The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1900-11-15
THE STRANGER IN CHURCH.

THE STRANGER IN CHURCH.
Sympathy is frequently expressed for
ohe clergyman who undertakes TO preach
trial sermon. For an unaSsuming
man the situation is likely to prove
trial in more senses than one; yet, as
a rule, there are certain favorable con-
dltionS calculated to relieve his embar-
BASEMENT. To begin with, the preacher
is strictly in the line of duty and has
| reasonable excuse for being in the pull
pit. He can generally count upon
few friends who are disposed to be
pleased with his discourse. If his
efforts fail to satisfy a majority of
hearers, these faithful ones may be de-
pended upon to stand by him and soften
the harsh criticism that otherwise would
be uncomfortable These facts, together
with others which need not be dwelt
upon, go to show that the preachers
condition is by no means as bad as it
might be. Indeed, there is reason to
believe that in many respects it is less
trying than the ordeal faced by a pri-
vate individual who ventures to attend a
strange church.
SO far as is known no one has openly
expressed sympathy for the stranger in
church, though his forlorn condition
must surely have been deplored in
secret by the tender hearted. Unlike
the preacher he has had no call to show
himself in public, and can offer no rea-
sonable excuse for his appearance. TO
a sensitive man the situation is hard
one, and few persons manifest a dis
position to make it easier. In many
churches it is the ell. tom for ushers to
show TO of
! This is something terrible. Most men
would rather charge a battery than
march up church aisle, exposed to
| raking fire of glances from curious
eyes. If a mana man, mind you, not
dude,-happens to be exceptionally
well dressed, he will naturally feel
ashamed of his fine raiment and wish
j himself in less conspicuous position.
If his clothes are a little seedy the sit
uation is equally Notifying. In short,
whatever he may or may not have on,
the stranger in church is commonly
made to feel that the good people are
Judging him by his outward appearance,
which, according to scripture, is very
improper thing to do.
| Even after he is seated the stranger
in church is not wholly at his ease. He
feels that he is touching elbows with
persons who own the very pew he is
sitting in. Sometimes he is given to
understand this by their actions. which
frequently speak louder than words.
nder such disagreeabie circumstances
the conclusion OF the service usually
leaves the stranger in worse state of
mind than it found him.
There is no good reason why this con-
dition of things should continue. No
sensible layman desires to see social
lines drawn tightly around his church,
and pastors who labor understandings
are lnsparing in their efforts to tear
down every barrier that stands between
the pulpit and the public. Touching
marked recently: 81 want my church
to be Sunday home for strangers, but
it rests mainly with the Pensioners to
make it one. On Sundays | am in the
pulpit and have little opportunity for
greeting people as | would like to do,
and on week days | can't go about the
streets urging people to come and hear
me preach"
OF course he can't! The man is a
gentleman and a scholar-utterly in
capable of advertising himself. OF re-
sorting to cheap devices to catch the
public ear. If outsiders are attracted
to his church they must be drawn there,
as he says, mainly through the efforts
of his Pensioners. Furthermore, the
excellence of the sermon will not in
sure regular attendance unless strangers
meet with fairly cordial reception
from members of the church. This
fact is getting to be recognized in the
larger cities, and special pains are taken
to make the casual visitor feel at home.
Last winter at Trinity church in Bos-
ton a committee composed of bright
young men was formed for this express
purpose. They were instructed to give
strangers 1.-The glad hand" to show
them to desirable seats and to pay par
ticular attention to those who were
poorly dressed. Meanwhile the con-
gregation entered into the work so
heartily that it was common sight to
see ultra-fashionable worshippers shar-
ing their hymn books with working
people whose dress betokened poverty, if
not actual privation. This may have
been mere fad, but if so it was good
one. Perhaps it might be advantage
ously followed in smaller communities,
where the stranger in church frequent
ly meets with cool reception and is
treated with scant courtesy. West
brook Gazette.