Perth Amboy evening news., 1906-12-07
VAUDEVILLE TURNS"
PoPuLARIzINc CHURCH


Acting upon the theory that got,
ting people to attend church service.
even by methods smacking of the sem,
sational, is better than to preach the
word of God before empty benches
the Rev. Frank NJ. Goodchild, paste,
of the Central Baptist church in West
Forty-second street, New York, has
hit upon the idea of prefacing his
Sunday evening services with unor-
thodox items of entertainment gener-
ally classed under the head of vaude-
vile turns"
The church, by reason of its loca-
ton, in the very maelstrom of theat-
rical activity, derives a good proper
ton of its Sunday attendance from
members of the theatrical profession.
The pastor found no difficulty in get
ting the player folk to attend his Sun
lay morning services, but at night it
was a different thing. Many who
might have been drawn to his church
In the evening, he found instead 60
ing to vaudeville house and theatres
where so called Sacred concerts
DR.. Goodchild has had experience
were being given.
In building up congregations in Phil
adelphfa where he brought nm the
attendance at the Spruce street Bap-
fist church from thirty or thirty-fye
to several hundred, and he set TO
work to apply the same method to his
New York church which he had ap-
piled with so much success to his
Philadelphia charge.
First of all he had a piano INSTALL
ed on the pulpit platform, and this he
used with telling effect, in combina-
ton with the church organ, to rem
der excerpts from grand opera and
the standard symphonies. 1t was an
innovation and created talk. That
was just what the pastor was after.
Members of the congregation spoke
to their friends about the Wagner.
Beethoven, Verdi, Gounod, Rubin
stein, Tschaikowsky, and Mozart mu-
sic to be heard in their church on
Sunday evening, and the handful
grew to hundreds.
But the pastor was not satisfied
quite. He reasoned that the people.
whom he particularly wanted we're
those who under ordinary circum-
stances would not go to church at
all. In order to get this particular
class to come and hear him. he
~broadened his musical programme,
and introduced whistlers, v~iolinists.
mandolinists, manipulators of must
cal glasses, and negro MINISTRIES into
the profane part of the service.
h first time the Neapolitan man.
dolinist played his canzonettas from
the pulpit platform the congregation
rubbed its eyes, and the more con.
sentative in the asse lblage gasped.
The next Sunday when the lady
whistler sent forth her shrill sibila-
tons through the sanctiied atmos-
phere of the chur'l there was anoth-
er shock, and when the negro min
strels warbled their plantation melo-
dies on the following Sunday, the idea
of a religious service had undergone
a great change in the minds of those
in attendance.
Before each of the vaudeville pre-
ludes to his services, the Rev. DR..
Goodchild would make a short inter-
pretative address, taking for his
theme the musical composition to be
rendered, the personality of the COM
poser, the psychology of negro plan
tation songs, the influence of popular
music on religion and religious
thought, and similar and kindred
subjects, and the mandolinist, or the
otiil6 qudi LOT, the lduy WHlSll6I OF
the artist with the musical glasses.
would then step forward and give his
or her oil their selection.
The people who had gasped at the
daring of the pastor sat down to
think the matter out calmly, and soon
came to a realization that there was
nothing intrinsically holy about an
organ, just as there a nothing fun
damentally i%rreverent about a mando-.
lin. Singing hymns and whistlingI
them, they came to see, was not so
far apart as at first seemed.
The fame of the vaudeville over
lures used as introductions to the
evening services of the Central Bap-
fist church spread quickly, and soon,
despite the fact that the church is
located in a strictly non-residential
neighborhood, the attendance at night
was only limited by the size of the
edifice.
II have found" said the Rev. Dr..
Goodchild, in speaking If his rather
radical method of popularizing relig-
ion, that the %unctuous, .ponderous,
arid sort of dissertation used by a
great many preachers in various parts
of the city, Is not the kind that can
find favor with the class of people
who attend my church. Religion can
be genial, kindly, optimistic, cheer
ing, just as 1t can be dismal, heavy,
and forbidding. By prefacing my
service with musical novelties pitched
in a pleasant key l draw to me people
who otherwise would not come to this
service at ALL The means Justify the
end. No part of the service is sac
rificed because of the musical prelude.
The session is longer, that is ALL"