The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-11-07


 Neighborhood House in West End, to be used as Day Nursery for children whose mothers arc away from home at work, which was bequeathed to the Episcopal Church by the late Miss Julia Wilson. was formally dedicated at o'clock yesterday afternoon with impressive ceremonies in the presence of a large audience.
 The regular service of the Episcopal Church was held with appropriate prayers for such an occasion, by Rev. Stewart Mcqueen, rector of the Church of the Holy Comforter and Rev. E. E. Cobbs. rector of St. Johns Church.
 The sermon of MT. Cobbs was deltv- cred in his usual forcefuI manner and was listened to intently by the audi ence that filled the large room of the building set apart for the day nursery.
 Speaking from the text The Memory of the Just Is Blessed" (Proverbs X:17,) Mr.. Cobbs said:
 "In the practical working out and presentation of the Gospel of Christ the church of today is a very different kind of organization from the church of one hundred years ago. Formerly the mis- sion of the church ended with the preaching of the word of God, now the mission of the church is seen just to begin and to open up with preaching. The church buildings of the mediae- val times compared with the church buildings of our times will strikingly illustrate this distinction. The type of building in the fifteenth century used for the public service of the church was the cathedral, the most beautiful. most dignified, most inspiring type of church building. But today as tour ists travel through England they visit these splendid architectural triumphs, and as they admire their beauty and majesty. instinctively they feel that they are looking upon relics of the past years. The cathedral was design ed to promote the conception of Chris tianity in the minds of the people of that day and country. and that concep- tion was that the preaching of the word was the essence of the religion of Christ. So the cathedral was all that there was, besides the homes of the clergy.
 Now look at one of our modern city churches. They woefu1Iy lack that beauty and inspiration"of the old cathe- dral. and in some instances they ap- proach very near to the architecture of the modern theatre, we could gain much by a return to the medieval con- ception of church building.
 But the church itself forms a small part of the numerous buildings group ed about it. There is the Sunday School building, with all the most ap- proved appliances for teaching. There is the parish house with numerous rooms for guilds and societies. There is the boys club building, with a large gym nasium, reading rooms, game rooms, play rooms. There is the sewing school, the cooking school, the carving class, There are clubs for women, men and little children. There is the Day Nur- sery and the home for aged and infirm. There is the kinder garten and the play ground. There is even a bureau of oc- cupation where men who are out of work may apply for positions. There Is the furniture store where people can buy furniture on the instalment plan without paying double the price for it. There is the hospital with its doors wide open to all who come. This is the only requirement, the need of hu- man help and skill. No sick and ach- ing form is ever turned away from those doors, but the humblest and the poorest are treated with all the kind ness and skill that the rich and great can buy. Come without money and without price"
 And now as we look at these condi- tions who can hesitate one moment be- tween them? Who would wish for a return to the older conception, much as there was in it of truth and beauty? Who does not feel thankful that he is living in this age and not in the medi- aeval times? Who does not sec how much truer and larger and higher our conception of the Church now is. Not simply for one department of mans na- ture, not simply for one day in mans week, but oh, for every capacity of his wonderful being and for every hour of every day.
 "The church now lays claim to all the life of a man, with all that it involves, declaring that not only is his soul worth saving. but that his body and his heart and his mind are also from the hand of God, and must partake of the blessings of the ministry of Him who came to save human beings, and who came with a body and a heart and a mind not unlike those which we pos sess. Every power and every agency that can touch man at any point has a right to a place in the work of the church; has more than a right, it has duty and 8 command.
 Has not our blessed Lord and Mas ter sanctihed and purified every part of these natures which we wear, by taking upon Himself in all it's complete ness the nature of man? He became very man, and by becoming man. he has lifted up all who wear the nature of man. And. coming to us, He claims the best of all that we have, a strong body, pure heart. a capable mind, and a noble spirit.
 '"The wonder of 1t all is that the church has been so many years in com ing into an understanding of the claims of Jesus Christ. The wonder of 1t all is that men have thought to reach the souls of people whose bodies were faint through hunger, and whose forms were racked with the ravages of disease and paint. The wonder of 1t all is that ignorance and superstition should so long have gone hand in hand with the preaching of the Gospel.
 Our Lord long ago went about among men, healing their bodies. open ing their eyes, alleviating their pain. Wherever He found ignorance and faIsehood He taught the truth wher- ever HeF found vice and corruption, His words were plain and went straight to the mark.
 We believe that the change in the conception and presentation of Chris tianity by the church is one which fol- lows the dictates of wisdom, meets the requirements of our times, and is sane tfoned and foreshadowed in the life and work of Jesus Christ.
 50, dear friends, we have come to- Eether here this afternoon to set apart this building for the care and love of little children; to set apart this build ing to the sacred memory of one whose love for little children was the su- preme love of her life; to set apart this