The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-06-08
REBUKED FROM THE PULPIT.
CHURCH MEMBERS OUT WHO
WOULDN'T GIVE UP DANCING.
Eight Sheep Of the Flock Of Pastor jackson
OF the Plainned C0lOred Baptist
Church Out OF the FOld-A Sister
Arises in Meeting and Talks Back.

Arises in Meeting and Talks Back.
PLAINp1ELD, n j., June 1.-THE Rev.
Ephram Elias Bruce jackson of the Mount
Olive Baptist Church has withdrawn the
right hand Of fellowship from eight OF his
flock and the eight don't care. At any rate
they don't care enough to take the pledge
never to dance again in order to get back
into the fold.
Some of them have promised to try not
to dance again, but that doesn't satisfy
the pastor. He has strict ideas on to what
a young colored Baptist should do and
should not do and he likes to go into details
Of conduct. This sign Us on the front of
his church.:
DO not smoke or bring lighted cigars
into the church.
mo Christian gentleman will use profane
or indecent language inside the church.
Others must not"
Gentlemen will remove their hats on
entering"
do not loaf upon the steps
While every member was willing to re-
frain from smoking and swearing in the
church there were some who wouldn't
take the dancing pledge, 80 they we're pub
lcy expelled at the last week ly meeting
and again to-day at the morning service
the row was stirred up when the Rev. Mr..
jackson censured Sister Jones from the
pulpit because two or three children kicked
up their heels in a jig in her home the other
night.
Sister Jones got right up In meeting and
answered back. II was her second speech
OF the meeting The first was testimony
and was as follows:
Il am glad to be here to-day" she said
and testify that l am a Christian and
tell what the Lord has done for me-
There was chorus OF "amens" and
4glories' from the members, but the Rev
Mr.. jackson didn't Join in uttering them:
He looked stern. and when the wave Of
devotional enthusiasm had subsidized a
little he said:
Don't you come here, Sister Jones, and
tell me about your Christian principles.
You ought to get up here and confess that
me to ask the Lord to forgive you
Sister Jones arose and shook her finger
at the pulpit.
Look here. Rev. E. E. What-do-you-
call-it jackson. you can't talk to me like
that from the pulpit II you are the min
and you know 1t lou know that l did
give a social to raise some money for this
here very church. and you came around
to count the money we took in, and II
few children felt so glad after you'd gone
that they jumped around little that isn't
any dance pastor:
After service Sister Jones was cheered
by the dance faction.
Did you ever hear Of a man being con-
verted on the ballroom floor?"". asked the
never did. And tell you that il an archi-
tect could build dance hall into which
the eve of the Lord couldn't penetrate
that architect would get about all the mohey
there is.
into playing the piano at party whore
there was going to be dancing, and as soon
as she knew what was going on she began
to play Precious Fountain and everybody
in that house went away because Of her
hat was than wearing just few thin
clothes and putting. your head on a gen
tleman's bosom and having all the passions
stirred to white heat when you don't know
the gentlemanf
a sermon on dancing and told me that il I
proved it was wrong they would all quit.
So l preached. There were 500 there, and
they all voted that dancing was SIN. Some
of them said dancing was all right because
Bible dancing was devotion, just the same
as the shouting glory and amen and shak-
ing hands Of to day. quoted Scripture
to show it-mournlng turned into dancing
and instead of sackcloth was girded with
gladness.
have backslld. One Of the eight was James
Miller, trustee Of the church. He said he
was sorry, but that his heart was fixed on
dancing and he couldn't come back to the
church till he got old.
Five Of the eight who have lost the grip
Of Mr.. Jacksons right hand are young
women. Two Of them, Bessie Mitchell
and Kate Mitchell, sisters, are reputed to
be the leaders Of the colored society of
painfield and their father Is retired min
preached for years in the pulpit now &C.
cupied by the Rev. Mr.. jackson.
There's no law in the Bible or in the
Baptist Church." said the Rev. Mr.. Mitchell.
against dancing, and II my daughters have
been put out Of the church where Mr. Jack
son breaches they won't miss anything in
the way of the Gospel,
sHe can keep his old right hand If he
wants it," said Louise Davidson Il
wouldn't stop dancing for minister that
insults all us Southern, girls. He gets
right up in the pulpit and tells us we work
down South for So a month without a rag
on our backs and when we get $40 month
up here we have to put on lot OF glad
clothes and get gay;
He says we ought to care more about
the glad tlQlnpS IMAM Jue Rldu ClOlHeS.
He wears tall silk hat himself all right"
Hattie Thomas thinks the pastor demands
too much.
sour girls club had Dance she said.
land as soon as Pastor Jackson heard Of it
he made me stand right up in meeting
before everybody and told me to repeat after
him BY the will OF the Lord I'll never dance
again / repeated the first part all right
then lust said that by the will OF the Lord
I'd try not to dance any more forever,
but that wouldn't suit the pastor. He
grabbed away his right hand from me
and the other girls
aHe didn't say a word against dancing
said Florence johnson, still he found out
our club wasn't going to give the proceeds
of our dance to the church. Then he made
an awful holler, must say for .gospeller.
That's what's the matter; we didn't give
him the money
aTd like to have him know that our dance
parties are respectable and every girl
wears a plenty of clothes and behaves
herself"
There is a new colored Episcopal Church
lust organized in Plainfeld and some
Of the colored Baptists are going over to
Il because it doesn't make any fuss about
iancing.
PELICAN ISLAND OURS.