Omaha daily bee., 1903-06-08
FAULT is WITH The CHURCH
CvsrlOOks Its Purpose and Fails to Help He
that Tolls
REV. CHARLES sTELzLE OUTLINES REMEDY
Believes Church should Seek Men and
Give Ala Not Only Spiritually,
but Socially, Mentally and
Physically.


byterian clergyman stand in a duly author
lied pulpit and advise the preachers and
lsymen to go upon the streets into the
shops and about the city, speaking the
gospel to crowds and individuals, If they
would have the church influence working
men. This Rev. Charles Sickle did yes
terday morning at Westminster church.
He is from st. Louis and is pastor OF the
Markham Memorial church there, an in
stitution that 10000 persons, not a one
earning more than SIS a week, attend
every month. Rev Stelzle has coupled
the church and the workingmen in the east
end of st. Louis and the Presbyterian
Board of Home Missions has sent him on
a six months tour of the middle west to
tell the other ministers how to do likewise,
Rev. stelzle believes that the chief end
of the church Is the people, and not the
church. He thinks the only way to inter-
est workingmen in the church is to take
the proposition of Christianity TO them. and
furthermore he has a conviction that the
only factor that can solve the labor prob
lem is the induction of the Christian spirit
into both employer and employe.
Yesterday morning the preacher took his
text from st. John; "As Thou hast sent
me into the world even 30 hast Thou sent
them into the world
speaks from Experience
II was a machinist for eight years in
New York city," said Rev stel2le. II
worked In the largest shop. in the city,
where 1900 men were employed. Only
about per cent Of them attended church.
and think this fact was one OF the chief
things that sent me into the ministry,
Not long ago John Mitchell told me that
the feeling of bitterness toward the church
which the workingmen at one time held
dloes not now exist, but that feeling OF
indifference has taken it's place. There is
tolerance and even pity felt for the church,
but little interest.
'I believe this is because the church as
a whole is passionless. A workingman not
long ago told me he thought the impotency
of the church was due to the fact that
the ministers do not take their calling
seriously enough--that they left unsaid
many things which they should say, and
said many things which they, should not.
Personally think he apty described a
large proportion of both the ministry and
the membership. 1t would be far different
II the worlsingmen could see the passion
for souls in human hearts.
Playing with the Problem.
"The truth is. We have been playing with
the problem. God intended that the work
ingmen should be found through the
church, and He will make way Some
people say that the whole fault Is with
the workingmen, but don't yot know that
| the church was established for faulty
people? BY what right does IT turn aside
from faulty people and refuse 10 try to
minister to them? Is there a hospital that
would refuse to succor the sick because
the patients are sick? The church has no
right to turn away from humanity because
1t is Indifferent and wicked The great
fault of the church lies in not studying
helpful ministrations. The whole problem
of reaching the workingman is UP to the
| church.
'"The real question is how much does
the church want to reach the people? The
great factor in solving all problems is the
Christ spirit. Love is stronger than argu-
| ment, better than sacrifice and more
effective than any other method. John
Mitchell said to me recently 1T isn't so
much what you do tt iB what you are.
If you can show them you really love
them you will have no difficulty in making
them Christians Nr d.
THE average church Is a failure IN
reaching worl1ingmen 1t may reach the
women and children, but II don't get the
men. To reach the men you will have to
plant churches in their communities and
have to touch the lives of the people on
as many points as possible.
Are Cold Storage Houses. s,
''The church that reaches the husband,
wife and children. not only on Sunday,
but all through the week, and which min
listers to their social intellectual and phys
ical lives, as we'll as their spiritual lives
is the church that will succeed. I believe
he ~,
on Sunday and closed the rest OF the week
is not only a bad business investment, but
is sometimes a cold storage house.
.'I have sympathy for the worlingman
who is inclined to go to the saloons. When
I became a Presbyterian 1 was told to
forego my old associates and not to go to
the theaters. had not one single place to
spend a social evening Those who say
that after a man has received Christianity
he has enough. forget they are dealing
with human nature. A man needs all the
help he can get of all kinds. So far as
the records show Jesus spent some three
years in preaching and the remainder of
His time in feeding the hungry. healing
the sick and ministering to mems physical
needs.
THE church In trying to reach men must
make the people the end of its endeavors
instead of the church itself The church
is merely a means toward an end. When
the average workingman is solicited to
join a church he believes that he is
wanted merely to help support the institu-
ton. Christ did not heal the sick to get
them to come to hear Him preach. He
did It out OF compassion for them. The
abominable idea OF building up a church
for the church's sake must be driven out.
LabOr's InteFest in the Theme.
There is no other gospel other than that.
of Jesus Christ that will solve the labor
question. All great students OF the sub
ject agree upon this, for at heart 1t Is a
great moral and religious question. Labor
difficulties can never be settled finally by
material means. by strikes, nor EVEN by
arbitration committees. They win be set |
tied finally only as the spirit OF Christ
comes into the heart Of the employer and
employe.
"The workingmen will not come to church
at the mere invitation. You must go out
and get them. 1 believe we should go into
the shops. on the streets. into tents. in
the populous districts. and everywhere that
workinGmen congregate and can be found.
cannot find a single command in the
Bible that tells a man TO go to church.