The Portland daily press., 1901-02-04
ANNIVERSARY SERMOy.
Address Of Rev. j. @.
Perkins.
Celebrating the Seyenty-Fifth Birth
day Of Stone Church.
An Eloquent and Inter
esting Discourse
From the Same Text as That OF
DR.. Nichols 75 Years Ago.


celebrate the 10Th anniversary Of the
dedication of Its stone church and yester-
day the pastcr, Rev. John Carroll Per-
kIns preached q sermon fitting to the
occasion, taking his text from Genesis
1922. And this stone, which have set
for pillar, shall be Gods house. He
said, In part; "This Is the text that Dr
Nichols ufed on the Sth of February,
1925, just rs years ago on the occasion of
the dedication Of the stone building In
which we now worship. Since l740 the
parish had worshipped in q wooden
meeting house that had at various times
been heightened, repaired and augment
ed by porohes and steeple until Mt last
when populsrly designated the 'oid
jerusalem 1t had won its honorable
release.
"Dr. Nichols was then almost 4e years
OF age and had been preaching In the old
church seventeen years. Or his ideal of
this new church, DIR. Nichols said: We
may say then, bretheren, that we dedicate
this house 20 religion, imploring that
here 1t may ever display itself In the
most pure and uncorrupted form; sensi-
be. that either as genuine or per vert
ed. 1t must spring up In every condition
OF our race, fastened indissolubly upon
us by error CT by truth, by light or dark
ness, by the fears or the joys OF con.
science; and that no greater service can
bs performed than to give 1t right direo-
tion and to promote Its best influence in
the world. :"
Rev Mr.. Perkins thought 1t hitting
to consider with seriousness the signifi-
canoe of church ike thu First Parish
in the community, and said that "in the
Interpretation of religion the parish has
taken advantage Of those methods Of re-
ligious observance that commended
themselves to the various periods of its
history. Problems OF organization, of
doctrine and forms of worship have been
consistently and conseryatively studied
and with due.seriousness adopted or re-
jected. The church has had few II any
spasm odic, passionate experiences. For
some the parish has moved too rapidly;
for some 1t has moved too slowly. but
these trifles have besn OF the surface
only.
"rhe records OF the par ish disclose
dignined and proportionate sense of the
value OF religion. One may read the REQ
ords of church and parish from bagin-
ming to end and apart from contem-
poransous testimony and ira iitional
stories, scarcely ever once becoming con-
Ecious that there were controversies or
any kind of bitterness in the administra-
tion Of religion here. A spirit OF individ.
sonal character, OF the Importance of
right thinking, Of the dread of our hasty
judgment or too precipitate action, of a
love of well proportioned service, OF
carefully weighed propositions, OF safe,
well founded oonolusionE-these are the
spirits that hays hoverei about this place
of sacred worship ever sinoe the first
days OF the common life In this town"
Rev. MIR. Perkins dwelt upon the ma.
ture OF the parish and quoted a charac.
terizatlon OF 1t by William Willis, and
said: Parson Smith was the frat min
!ster OF the church and was settled when
the sterner teachings OF John Calvin
We're popular. His sermons abound In
the traditional phraseoioRy and disclose
the traditional methods. DIR. Deane, the
second minister and for many years a
colleague with DIR. Smith, brought a
fresher treatment OF many topics. With
DIR Nicholas pastorate beginning In 1909,
the church had Its golden age" as 1t
was also the golden age Of Portland"
In the middle of his ministry there were
more families in the church than ct
any pstio1 before or since. His positive
liberal teaching was welcome to the
DIR. Peabody speaks thus
Of this pastorate: "Dr. Nichols's min
istry In Portland was In some respects
unique. From the first, he attracted to
himself by elective affinity, the strong
minds, the vigorous thinkers, the scnol-
arly men of Portland, and there can hard
Iy have bten church In New England
which had 30 high an average standard
as his, as to the ability and culture OF
its worshippers. At the same time the
lowly of mind and heart were equally
drawn to him by the fervor Of his de-
votloaal spirit ana the warmth of his
The strong personality of DIR. Stebbins,
the tender, modest sympathy of MIR
Bailey; the oonseorated intellect of DIR.
Hin are held In blessed memory by many
In our parish at the present time. Nor
are there Iacking many men of great
charscser among the parishioners who
equally with the ministers, have Gre
ate1 that temper OF mind and life by
which this parish holds its place in
Portland"