The Marshall republican., 1910-05-27
A Red-Hot Sermon


in Marshall last summer at our
Chautauqua has an article on
revivals in the June issue of Hamp
toms Magazine that fairly sizzies
with sharp sayings. 1t is an in
terview with "Billy" Sunday the
formost revivalist of the day.
81 presume,' l said, chat the
general impression that these Of
ferings are very large is correct"
SWELL" said Billy Sunday, "if the
people in a community out of graf
itude of their hearts give me one
thousand or twenty thousand, I
consider it nobody's business but
their own. It's the people who
never give a dollar that do the
growing"
"No," l said, "it isn't growing
its only that people r. interest
ed in any work that produces large
returns"
"Go on!" said Billy. "You can't
make me believe it's any interest
in religion that makes people talk
about my remuneration. It's a case
of sou grapes. But if I uwanted
to live easily I wouldn't need to
do this work. / refused an offer
of $4,000 to do Chautauqua lectur-
ing during July and August alone
One Chautauqua offered me $500
for mi address. But / turned them
all down"
"You prefer professional evan
gel SIN then, do your"
II ~ am not a professional evan
geiist. / absolutely refuse to be
called PROFESSIONAL My life's
work is to preach the Gospel. /
am called of God to do what I am
doing-and in the way I am doing
it. Maybe some people don't be-
lieve that. l don't care l do.
am doing Gods work, and what
people give me for that work is
absolutely nobody's business"
"What is it, Mr.. Sunday, you do
differently from other preachers
that makes you work SO success
ful?n
an tell you,' said Billy. ~ have
MT any tricks. I'm just an old
fashioned preacher. l tell people
in plain words the simple truth
that they are lost in sin and need
salvation. / just preach the Bible
that's all"
eyes I know; but so do all the
other preachers and"
"No they don't ether" said Sur
day; "that's right where they fal'
down. They preach Emerson and
Browning and Matthew Arnold ant
and any old thing. They don't
preach the Bible. 1 do. l talk
about sin and divine mercy. ]
preach heaven and hell just as the
Bible does. My heaven has streets
paved with gold and gates of pear
and l don't talk about hades-l
talk about hell fire and eternal dan
nation for those who die in willful
unrepented sin.
81 tell you people want to be
saved-if they only are shown how
And the ministers don't do 1.-THE
churches don't do it. The gulf be.
tween the Church and the masses
is awful. 1t never touches them
This new-fangled religion of cul.
ture and evolution never VIII
What this country wants is az
old-time Pentecost of blood ant
fire."
"But don't you touch the practi.
cal problems-the moralities of lif,
in your preaching2"
"Sure I do" and the evange.
lists eyes snapped fire, "that'
lexactly what I do that SO man,
of the preachers don't do. The,
stand up and talk nicely about Gu
ture and modern philosophy; blu
they don't dare to tell the rich oil,
souse in the front pew that il
spite of his solemn Sunday smirl
he is a rotten old h~ypocrite ant
headed straight for hell.
"You see, they're afraid OF hin
and ! amt. Drunkenness, gambl
ing, adultery, theater going, dane
ing and card playing are damnini
America, and nothing can save !
from ruin but a revival OF old
fashioned religion
"You think, then, that u pop
ular amusements and recreation
: r wrongT