Pine Bluff daily graphic. (Pine Bluff, Ark.) 1893-1942, 1904-07-10
REAL REAS SON
Why Men Doa.t Attend Church Is
Lack OF Interest in Religion


Lack OF Interest in Religion
S"NeraI preacher, Paz!ed rAa@=
solves and their coG4re2a1foa Ia
Sunday by trying IL discover and oNz
plain the reasons why men DOM go
TO church NON. ,herr is no mystery
whatever ahoa thai matter The
nsen doa.G 20 10 church simply IN.
cause They don't believe ia Tie neees=
sil1 for going
CcnsHsrs ot the church Attendance
i'll London and NeW York and other
American cities. taheA last year
showed t'lat in both countries women
and children make up the vast major
ilN Of the CONGREGATIONS al churches.
5snalIH It is HE same i'll all the
countries OF Ghristendom with Rus
STA a notable exception, and also some
German states This demonstration
OF the greater regard for religious
obSerVanccs among women would be
made 10 appear the more striking il
there could be enumerated The l&r@a
part Of men churchsoers who are in
attendance simply out of courtesy to
their wives or sweethcarts. or be
cause they have yielded .good=naturcd-
ly to feminine persnasions
The preachers complain dat at
this time the criticism OF sermons
has become so severe among men
that only Very rare abilities in the
pulpit can hope TO satisfy it. But
there is nothing i'll that suggestion
which affords a reasonable eXplana-
ton of the tendency of men TO stay
away from church. intellectually.
sermons at this time are probably OF
Il higher order than al earlier periods.
Take the period of the so-calied great
aWakening of 1851, when every
Protestant church was crowded to
the doors al every service and thea
ters had to BE called into requisition
to make room for the thrOngs eager
to listen to religious eXh0rtation and
anxious concerning the salvation OF
their souls. Generally the preaching
was of a low order intellectually. II
it was eloquent the eloqueNce= was
merely in its earnest conviction. Al
a time like this it would be regarded
as rhapsody as a sentimental Outburst
which defeated itself by its eXtrava-
gance of emotion.
We are approaching our quadren-
nial canvass for the presidency. How
will it be next autumn when the cam
paign gets hot9 Every great hall in
town will be crowded almost nightly
with attentive and enthusiastic men.
such political meetings,
but relatively they will be far fewer
es. When men are really Interested
in the subject the cause" or the par.
tisan purpose of a public meeting
open to them freely, there is no trou-
BILE in getting them to attend it.
If, then, men do not 90 TO church,
the reason is that they have not a
and vital interest in the roll
gion preached They do not believe
in il, they are not devoted 10 it as
they believe in their political princi-
pies and are devoted 10 the political
party to which they belong. tsuany
their attendance at church is per-
functory. if they 90 at ali Il is with
them rather an irksome duty than
privilege gladly welcomed. Theo-
re>fcally, Of course, under The teach
inc OF religion, it is their one para
mount dutE, beside which all Other
earthly occupations are Of utter IN
si4nifcaHco. + religion is true the
only pursuit Of man Of any essential
importance is the pursuit Of saliva
tom yet ii is among Mohammedans
rather than Christian thai we see a
regard for religious worship which in
dicates faith in its necessity
The reason why men do not 60 to