Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1905-05-08
LOSS OF TIME IN MINISTRY.

The exercises incident to the twenty
second commen cement Of Westminster
Theological Seminary, the institution
at which candidates for the ministry OF
the Methodist Protestant Church are in
structed, began in Westminster, Md,
yesterday morning with the bacc lau-
reate service, which was held in the
church Of that denomination in that city.
The special feature of the service was
tue sermon delivered by Rev. Hugh
Latimer Elderdice, president of the sem
mary. DR.. Elderdice made bold and
searching analysis of the causes which
lead to a loss of time in the ministry. lie
said, in part
"SOme ministers lose time by lazness.
The holy Office has its share OF parasites
who absorb living rather than give
life. They sweat neither brow nor brain;
fatten at every family feast in the par
ish, loaf and lounge in self-indulgence
during the week and on Sunday have the
iniquitOus impudence TO face an audi
ence crying for bread and give to them
only a stone. Here is case III which
time destroyed is suicide, where more
than blood is split. A lazy preacher
has mistaken the call; God has no place
for him in the pulpit; man has no use
for him in the pew; his wife is clog to
every wheel in the machinery OF the
church.
"Some ministers lose time by misdirect-
ed study. They spend more time with
pages than with flesh and blood; study
everything except human nature; their
bookworn thoughts are off on tangent
from the sphere of practical preaching;
they revel in the realm Of ideas until
unfit to play their roles on the stage OF
pastoral action; they love their books
moro than they love their fellows; linger
in the library when they ought to be
talking Christ in the shop of sinner;
ponder over philosophy when they ought
to be praying with a penitent; search
science when they ought TO be comfort
ing saint in the chamber of death; and
burn the midnight oil TO deck their ser
mons with the flowers of literature when
they ought to be seeking The lost sheep
in the mountain death shades or healing
the bird with the broken wink dying un-
der the wayside hedge.
'This is not discounting an educa-
tional ministry, but placing a premium
on we'll balanced education. There Is
vast difference between his mastering
books and books mastering him. Let
him be cultured, but not at the cost OF
his passion tor souls. If he bury him.
self among his books all week he may
appear on Sunday with profound pro-
duction, but it will sound stale and
smell musty; it will lack the freshness
and the fragrance of real life, showing
familiarity with what dead men have
written, rather than with what live men
need, and dealing with the facts Of
philosophy rather than with the philos-
Cphy of facts in his parish.
'Some ministers lose time by the
wrong use of the pulpit They magnify
the nonesseulials, dwell on secondary
values, bushwhack on the outposts, but
never storm tue fort. The denomina-
tioual debates make every text pay trib-
ute to his creed, the literary lecturer
degrades his Sunday evening service by
a hero worship of an author, the tire
some theolgiau unravels whole sec
tions of systematic theology every
Sunday morning, and the sensational
ist catches his crowd by cirrus adver'
tising and holds it by blasphemous
yellow pulpitism.' Enter the pulpit
to do only the one thing-'preach the
Word There is no need to dissect the
claims of the higher critics for light.
Preach the contents Of the Bible and the
entrance of its light will be more bril-
liant than the expOsitions Of modern
scholarships, so called. Nor need you
waste much time with series of lectures
on the evidences of Christianity which
YOU have mastered at school,
"SOme ministers lose time by having
too many irons in the fire. In sOciet!
he inaugurates some reform; in polite
he champions some crusade; in charl
table organizations he Identifies himsel
with every good work, from the Prisoners
Aid Association TO the Fres Air Society
The church club today and the brother
hood tomorrow; the temperance meeting
at noon and the Christian citizenship
!. rally at night; a missionary meeting Set
urday afternoon aud union evangel
istic service Sunday afternoon. Listen t
every signal OF distress, hut do not b
sideracked. BE busy in the right place
He who does well one work at tim
p does more than all To all calls tha
! interfere with your legitimate bushes
answer with Nehemiah Il am doing
| great work, 50 that cannot com
! : ~