Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1900-05-28

! tiOnal, soft habits Of my position and
have lived in the society of the rich,
refined, aristocratic members of my con-
gregations. Where has the suffering
come in? What have I suffered for
Jesus sake? Do you know, Calvin
the bishop turned abruptly toward his
! friend-t'I have been tempted of late
! to lash myself with a scourge. If had
! lived in Martin Luther's time, l would
| have barred my back to self inflicted
torture.
DR.. BrN;e was very pale. Never had
he seen the bishop or heard him when
under the influence of such a passion.
There was sudden silence in the room.
The bishop had sat down again and
bowed his head. DR.. Bruce spoke at last:
Edward, I do not need to say that
you have expressed my feelings also l
have been in similar position for
years. My life has been one of compar
alive luxury. 1 do not, of course, mean
to say that I have not hard trials and
discouragements and burdens in my
church ministry, but I cannot say that
have suffered any for Jesus. That
verse il Peter haunts me, Christ also
suffered for you, leaving you an exam
pie that We should follow his steps, I
have lived in luxury. do not know
what it means to want. | also have had
my leisure for travel and beautiful COM
partnership. l have been surrounded by
soft, easy comforts Of civilization. The
sin and misery of this great city have
beat like waves against the stone walls
of my church and OF this house in
which I live, and I have hardly needed
them, the walls have been so thick.
have reached a point where l cannot
endure this any longer. I am not con-
demning the church. [ love her [ am
not forsaking the church. 1 believe in
her mission and have no desire to de-
stroy Least of all, in the step l am
about to take, do desire to be charged
with abandoning the Christian fellow
ship, but feel I must resign my place
as pastor Of Nazareth Avenue church
in order to satisfy myself that I am
walking as ought to walk in his steps
In this action I judge no other minis
tiers and pass no criticism on others
discipleship, but feel as you do Into
a closer contact with the sin and shame
and degradation of this great city I
must come personally, and I know that
to do that | must sever my Immediate
connection with Nazareth Avenue
church. I do not see any other way for
myself to suffer for his sake as [ feel
that ought to suffer. -
Again that sudden silence fell over
these two men. It was no ordinary ac
ton they were deciding. They had both
reached the same conclusion by the
same reasoning, and they were too
thoughtful, too well accustomed to the
measuring Of conduct, to underestimate
the seriousness of their position.
"What is your plan?'' The bishop at
last spoke gently, looking up with his
smile that always beautifed his face.
The bishops face grew in glory now
every day.
''My plan, " replied DR.. Bruce slowly, i
sis, in brief, the putting Of myself into
the center Of the greatest human need
I can find in this city and living there.
My wife is fully in accord with me.
We have already decided to find resi- |
dence in that part Of the city where we
can make our personal lives count for
the most. >
''Let me suggest place. . The bishop
was on fire now. His fine face actually
glOwed with the enthusiasm of the /
movement in which he and his friend /
were inevitably embarked. He went on
and unfOlded plan of such farreaching
power and posi- bility that Dr.. Bruce, !
capable and experienced as he was, felt |
amazed at the vision of a greater soul !
than his own
They sat up late and were as eager /
and even glad as if they were planning
for trip together to some rare land of |
unexplored travel Indeed the bishop |
said many times afterward that the !
moment his decision was reached to live !
the life of personal sacrifice he had |
chosen he suddenly felt an uplifting, as
if a great burden was taken from him
He was exultant. So was DR.. Bruce |
from the same cause.
Their plan as it finally grew into a
workable fact was in reality nothing
more than the renting of large build
ing formerly used as a warehouse for a
brewery, recOnstructing it and living
in it themselves in the very heart of
territory where the saloon ruled with
power. where the tenement was it's
flthiest, where vice and ignorance and
shame and poverty were congested into
hideous forms. 1t was not new idea.
1t was an idea started by Jesus Christ
when he left his Father house and for
sock the riches that were his in order
to get nearer humanity and, by becom-
ing part of its sin. help to draw hui
manity apart from its sin. The univer-
sity settlement idea is not modern. 1t is
as old as Bethlehem and Nazareth and
in this particular case it was the near
est approach to anything that would