The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1908-05-05
WHERE DO THEY co?
QUESTION OF INTEREST
CHURCH PEOPLE.
Nonattendant at Religious Service,
Converted in Boyhood, Makes a
Frank Confession That Is
Worthy of Attention.

A recent number of the America,
Magazine takes up the subject of "Po
ligion Inside the Church and Ont" II
the course of the article, which is :
defense of the church, the following
confession of a young Chicago non
churchgoer is published:
Your story of The Rev. Billy SIN.
day and His War on the Devil in tho
American Magazine refreshed tbo
memory of my own conversion back IN
1883 under the preaching of another
great r%evivalist. l was IL years old AZ
the time.
Il had been making trouble in scbool
when the meetings began. My people
were worried about me. The revival.
list offered a way to reform. So | was
urged to attend the meetings. or
course, l heard a great deal about hell
and the damnation of sinners. Scores
were being converted. There was
great excitement. l was pushed and
pulled. Finally, 1 surrendered, al,
though / was not conscious of any.
thing but a desire to please my par.
ents, to avoid future punishment and
to effect the necessary reform in nv
conduct at school.
THE next step was joining the
church. That was easy. All l had TO
do was to go through the ordeal of a
meeting with the church committee.
composed chiefly of respected old men
in the town whose confidence | was
glad to have.
Il enjoyed the experience of being
a full-fiedged Christian for a long time.
My father and mother were pleased
beyond expression, and for years
think that l was a better boy-that is,
more restrained in my behavior in
school, perhaps. l cannon recall any
other definite manifestation of con.
version l continued to go to Sunday
school and to church twice Sunday.
had become a habitual church-goer.
"By the time l was IS or 10 | began
to grow sick of it all. l began to see
that l had no genuine interest in the
church. l was not going to the bad,
either. Far from it! My conviction
that decency makes for happiness was
taking deep root. l intended to be a
good man, and l began to want to
work it out in my own way. l felt
that was just about to begin my seri.
GUS life, and-do you want it straight
from the shoulder?-I felt that |
wanted to begin outside the church.
l don't know why. l am not arguing
this thing or trying to prove anything.
l am just trying to tell you.
Very soon-I was 81, l. Think
left the little town where my father
and mother brought me up and came
to Chicago to live. That was nine
years ago.. And-shall l tell you? !
have never been inside a church more
than a dozen times since.
Now 1 don't want you to interpret
this as a criticism of the church. Do
you think l would rebuke the institu'
ton which has given my good father
and mother hat peace which is ny
happy assurance of their future vel.
being? Neither do l find fault with the
Rev. Billy Sunday. Not one out OF
100000 whom he has converted may
turn out the way l have. He may not
try to convert children, either. don't
know about that. / think that that
makes very little difference, however
Many people are children, nc matter
low old they are. All know is that
ever since L can remember the church
es have been rushing names onto theli
membership rolls. And yet the cry IS
that the churches are falling of ID
numbers. Where do they all go?"