The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-03-11
BEARD OPPOSED
TO BILLY SUNDAY.
PASTOR OF FIRST coNeREeA.
TIoNAL CHURCH READ A
STATEMENT AT YESTERDAYS
SERVICES EXPLAINING HIS
PosITIoN-coMMENTs ON GILL.

The following statement of DIR.
Beard was read in his pulpit Sunday
morning:
Inasmuch as certain occurrences
during the past week have made abb
solutely impossible my further par
ticipation in the William A. Sunday
revival campaign, a plain statement OF
facts by me becomes necessary at this
time.
About two years and a half ago this
church voted to unite with other
churches In inviting Mr.. Sunday to
hold a series of revival meetings in
Fargo. This vote was with the dis
tinct understanding that each individ-
ual member must be left free to par
ticipate or not participate in the ac-
tive work of carrying on such meet
ings. Negotiations were finally COM
pleted and it was arranged to have
Mr.. Sunday begin these meetings the
first Sunday in April.
Mr.. Sundays advance agent arrived
in Fargo about a week ago. At his
first meeting last Sunday afternoon at
the Y. Nd. G. A. building he had a great
deal to say about ~hypocrites. Of
course, he did not mean to infer, and
nobody thought he meant to infer.
that there could be hypocrites among
those who favored the Sunday meet
ings. But he did mean to infer, and
everybody knew it, that the hypocrites
were among those who did not believe
in the Sunday meetings.
In a talk at the Presbyterian church
on Tuesday night he assumed a more
menacing attitude, and assured his
hearers that those who were hindering
this movement would be "~unmasked".
AS If to be opposed to Mr.. Sundays
methods were a cardinal sin, and the
men who hold such views were hideous
shapes to be uncovered.
At the ministers meeting last Mon
day morning / felt that fairness to MI.
Sunday required that his advance
agent be told how small a proportion
of my church really believed in MI.
Sundays methods, and how few, there
fore, could be depended upon to take
an active part in the work. I explain
ed the matter to him fully. He gave
me this comforting assurance, Or.
Beard, it may be that you underes-
1hiAA@IC IHO SplLAkudiAly VI yOuE PGO-
ple."
I felt compelled to resent the insult
by reminding him that I did not es-
innate the spirituality of my people
by their attitude toward the Sunday
meetings.
This kind Of religious snobbery is an
anarchronism in the twentieth century;
it is intolerable in any century.
In perfect keeping with the insulting
remark Of Mr.. Sundays advance agent
last Monday morning were his insult
ing actions and words last Wednesday
afternoon, when he gave the CONNER
cial club thirty minutes in which to
raise $4,000, or the Sunday meetings
would be called off. The business men
had fulfilled every financial condition
prescribed by Mr.. Sunday, and his
sudden additional demand implied that
Fargo men could not be depended upon
to keep their pledges. BY a lot Of inn
portunity he was induced to extend the
time Of raising the money a few hours,
and finally the whole financial plan
was so changed that the demand for
$4,000 cash was withdrawn.
AT the meeting on Wednesday night
his treatment of all the men who could
not conscientiously agree to take an
active part in the campaign was simp-
ly scandalous. They were treated as