El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-12-24

| After an absence of ten years, the
Rev. H. M. Whaling has again assumed
the work as pastor of the Trinity M.
e. church in this city and preached
his first sermon yesterday morning.
| 1t has been ten years almost to a
day since he preached his farewell
sermon to an Ell Paso congregation.
as on Christmas day, ten years ago to-
morrow he was on the train speeding
away to his new charge.
Since he was the shepherd of the
Trinity flock he has been pastor of the
largest church of his denomination in
Baltimore, Md, st. Paul's. the pulpit
of which he occupied from 1894 to
1898. Since that time he has been
pastor of the M. E. Church, South, in
Austin.
He preached yesterday morning at
II o'clock. but was suffering from Sc
we're cold. probably due to his change
from a low to high altitude, and an
nounced that he would not be able to
occupy the pulpit in the evening SER
vice, but that Presiding Elder Good
son would preach then in his stead.
Before commencing his sermon he
told his congregation that he was glad
to again be with the people with whom
he had already spent three pleasant
years. He informed them that he
would not accept any invitations to
dine out on Sunday nor receive social
calls on the Sabbath.
He took for his text a part of the
fourth verse of the fifteenth chapter
of st. John, whoch reads as fallows:
LAS the branch can not bear fruit it
self. except it abide in the vine; no
more can We. except We abide in me-
Taking this for his foundation he
preached a deep. instructive sermon
which clearly illustrated our depen-
dence upon Christ for our spiritual
life. Without an attachment to him,
he said, we would be as particles of
matter shifted about at the will of the
laws of nature.
Wrong does ITSELF but right requires
an effort. Decay is a natural result of
inactivity. A good smile he used to
illustrate this statement as follows:
If we lock our guitar up in it's case
out of tune and when we remove it we
find it in tune, we know that some one
has been working with it. But if we
put it away in tune and find it after
ward out of tune, we know that lie be-
gy to do good but none to do bad, the
one is like climbing upward, the 9TH
er like rolling downward and requires
no exertion on our part.
The Rev. Mr.. Whaling talks with
ease and grace and his points are
brought about with the connections so
perfect and plain that it requires no
racking of the mental powers to fol-
low him through from his statements
to his proofs. He talks as one man
addressing another in ordinary con-
versation. but clearly enough that ev-
cry word may be understood in any
part of the house.
He said yesterday that he was glad
to see so many familiar faces that had
been in his congregation in other
charges in other states and in other
cities of this state. The fact, said he,
is due to the collection at Ell Paso of
good people from all over Texas and
other states.
After the meeting many expressions
of pleasure with the sermon were
heard. 1t is plain to be seen that the
Trinity congregation is glad to have
the Rev. DR.. Whaling for it's pastor.
Almost every person in the house went
to Mr.. and Mrs. Whaling after the
close of the services and extended
them ahearty welcome back to the old
charge. ar