Omaha daily bee., 1908-10-27
BISHOP CONDEMNS CHEAP ART
New Methodist Prelate Says Some
Pictures Of Christ Injure Cause.
MANY SONGS IN SAME CLASS
fOOlish Sentiments Expressed In
wOuldbe Religious Songs Keep
Men from Churches and
MisFeprescnt Christ.

Weak and effeminate representations OF
Christ in art and insincere religious songs
are an influence in keeping men out of
churches according to Bishop ]. L. Nuelsen.
The bishop addressed theimen's mass meet
ing at the Young Mems Christian associa-
lion building Sunday afternoon. He pro-
nounced a number OF popular religious
songs ridiculous and declared the formal
face Of Christ as seen in pictorial Bibles
and art books IL weak.
DO you know there are 100000 men In
the United States who are not affiliated
with any OF our churches. And of the
church members tw9sihirds are women?' he
asked. why is tn lit is because a good
many men think on the religion of Jesus
Christ is not resl <them. that 1t is some
thing that does not appeal TO them as
something real and potent.
THE religion OF Christ is often presented
in our churches as something unreal, mys-
tical and uncertain. They hear people sing
4 want to be an angel and then in prayer
meeting they see the same people go down
on their knees and thank God that they are
stlll In the land Of the living and that He
has not taken them to Heaven yet. This
does not appeal to them.
Look at the pictures of Christ. He is
usually represented as a shepherd or as
bearing q cross. The representations we are
used to see of Him show a weak face, long
hair and a dreamy, PARKWAY look in his
eyes. lie is usually represented as effemin-
ate. Even on the cross He is so shown as
to excite our pity.
Hymn book Leaves Out Songs.
Many of the songs we sing are ridicu-
lous. The words don't mean anything and
thetmuslc ds not any better than thu words.
sn glad the Association Hymn book has
eliminated many Of them. There are still
four or five that might be thrown out,
And 90 many have come to look on re-
llsion as for women and children only.
That Is wrong, very wrong. Christ was the
manifest of men. A Chinese thinker who
could look on the Christian religion from
an independent standpoint has said that the
most striking thing in the character of
Christ with His courage, the undaunted
courage with which He faced the taunts of
Ills fellow countrymen, the dizziness Of His
followers. the pain of the cross. The next
striking quality, he said, was His love, not
cffeminate love, but strong, sometimes very
cNacting.
This view of Christ is more nearly cor
rect than the representations OF Him we see
in our picture books. Our old An~glo-Saxon
forefathers used to clap their swords and
shields together and yell At the top OF their
voices, rHurrah for Christ He appealed to
their manliness.
ChrIat's Great IRAusnce.
Christ has more TO do with us than Aris-
totle OF Plato or any other OF the worlds
great leaders. Jesus Christ il the most
potent and important factor in the molding
OF our lives. We have TO learn much from
books. hut the greatest factor in the forma-
ton of our characters is not what we learn
in books, but what we set from our asso-
citation with men. More than mother and
father, wife and children there Is Jesus
Christ to influence us. He not only influ-
sncss us in our lives, but He also emanateI
the power OF God. lie is very real and very
personal in His relations with us. Tn
manly Christ. He fought against wrong
who did right always, who suffered He
viii be and can be a living and powerful
influence in the lives OF men