The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1907-12-28
IMPRESSIVE
WAS SERVICE
With Which Episcopalians COnse.
cratedTheir NeWEdifiCe- Strong
Sermon by Rev. Hunting.


some new church building, now near
ing completion at Fourth and Lyons
avenue The church was beautifully
decorated with evergreen, palms and
cut flowers.
Rev. G. c. Hunting, rector of the
church, conducted the impressive
Christmas services of the church. and
in addition, the conservation service
of the new edifice.
The double quartette rendered in
fine form, the elaborate musical pro-
gram which had been carefully pre-
pared during the two weeks prior to
the service.
An especially attractive number of
the musical service, was the tenor
solo by Arthur A. Shell, who took the
solo part in the anthem, Nazareth.
The Rev. G. c. Hunting preached
an appropriate sermon. He said;
THE text which we shall consider
today is taken from st. Luke. Let
us now go even unto Bethlehem, and
see this thing which is come to pass.
which the Lord has made known to
us.
"One mile from Bethlehem is a Mt
tie plain in which under a grove of
olive trees stands the bare and neg
lected chapel known by the name of
The Angel of the Shepherds. 1t is
built over the traditional site of the
fields where, in the beautiful Ian
guage of st. Luke, more exquisite
than any adyl to Christian ears
There were shepherds keeping watch
l,Ti, lie Inv oil
angel of the Lord came upon them,
and the glory of the Lord shone round
them, and to their happy ears We're
uttered the good tidings of great joyl
that unto them was born that day
in the city of David. a Savior, which
was Christ the Lord.
The associations of our Lord
nativity We're all of the humblest
character, and the very scenery of
His birthplace was connected with
memories Of poverty and toll. On
that night it seemed, indeed, as ii
the heavens must burst to disclose
their radiant minstrelsies; and the
stars and the feeding sheep, and the
light and sound in the darkness and
stiffness, and the rapture OF faithful
hearts combine to furnish us with a
picture painted in the cOlors Of
heaven But in the brief and thrill
ing verses o fthe Evangelist we are
not told that even the angel songs
were heard by any but few wake
full shepherds of an obscure village,
and these shepherds, in the chill of
a winter night were guarding their
hocks from the wolf and the robber,
in fields where Rutl.. their ancastress
had CLEANED, sick at heart amid the
alien fields.
1T might have been expected that
Christian piety would have marked
the spot by splendid memorials, and
enshrined the rude grotto ssof the
shepherds in the marbles and mosaics
of some stately church. But instead
of this, the chapel of the Angel is a
mere rude crypt, and as the traveller
descends the broken steps which lead
from the olive grove to its dim re-
cesses, he can hardly persuade him
self that he is in n consecrated place.
Yet, half unconscious sense OF fit
ness has contributed to this apparent
neglect. The poverty of the chapel
harmonizes well with the humble toll
of those whose radiant vision it is in
tended to commemorate.
This coming of the shepherds to
Bethlehem was a cause of rejoicing
that has gone on from that day to
this. They found there the Messiah
that had been so fondly looked for
by Israel for many centuries. The
Jews had lived all their lives sur
rounded by an alien people and their
only hope was of the TIM when the
seed Of David should come and estab
lish kingdom that should last
throughout eternity. The Messiah
has come. the shepherds reioiced as
the first of their nation that was ac-
corded the privilege of worshiping at
His feet.
We celebrate that coming that
was hailed with so much rejoicing in
far off Bethlehem nineteen hundred
years ago Will we rejoice with the
same joy unspeakable as those hum
BILE hearted followers who, while
watching their sheep in the darkness
and the night, found time to COM
mune with their Maker about the
things that were to be, and to purify
their hearts for the reception of the
Third Person of the ever blessed
Trinity.
christmas is a time of rejoicing,
and its rejoicing is like no other re-
joicing in the year. The foundation
of all this rejoicing is an awful and
overpowering fact-'He humbled
Himself ! would ask you to realize
and contemplate its reality. The
Apostles Creek filled the hearts of
the ancient church with wonder.
They believed it, and it filled their
hearts and souls for lifetime. 1t
overshadoWed every other interest 1t
was to them the paramount fact in
the history of the world-the Incar-
nation.
"All that was done was real And
what was done was that He humbled
Himself. Think of what we revolt
from or despise, in circumstances, in
station, in the obligations and nee
essities of life; in rep ltation, in re-
lations with other men and the rest
of the world. All this, from the rig
orous necessities of its mean begin
nings to its shameful and dreadful
end, all this the Almighty Father
chose for His Eternal Son. All this
the Eternal son chose of His own will,
and took .upon Himself
THE contrast is sharp enough le,-
tween ordinary religion as it is at
the best, and the religion we read
of in the New Testament Don't let
us make the contrast sharper. Let
us not build on the realities of Christ
mts. life of forms and pretense and |
masks. Do not let us build on the |
sacrifice of Him who gave IN tho