Palisadian. [volume] (Cliffside Park, N.J.) 1906-current, 1915-12-18
New Parish House
Dedication Held
Last Sunday

The handsome new parish house
of the Episcopal Church of the
Mediator, Edgewater, was formally
dedicated last Sunday afternoon.
Bishop Lines officiated, assisted by
the rector, Rev. Francis Kirwan, and
the Rev. James of st Pauls, Engle-
wood, and Mr.. Deckenbach.
The building was filled to over
flowing with members of the church
and invited guests.
The musical service was rendered
by the joint chorus of Edgewater and
Fort Lee, accompanied by the organ
and strings.
After a short devotional service,
Bishop Lines, requesting the con-
gregation to rise, read the short but
beautiful service Of dedication, or
blessing. One could not but feel the
power in the words to transform the
structural unit into a place of re-
ligious aspiration and expression,
and that "by the preaching of the
Gospel therein many who now know
Thee not may hear of Thee, and turn
ing with all their hearts to Thee may
be cleansed from sin s. in this Thy
N"OAiiA'So oPOIl Cdl III Ill d IOuSG DullI
for the worship of Thy Name, though
the heavens and earth cannot con-
tain Thee"
The rector followed with a brief
account of the growth of the new
parish house movement; of the COM
plant formerly that the church COM
munlties were confined to the ends
OF the borough, and the demand for
a church home near the borough's
center He spoke of the final gift
OF the present plot by w. o. Ross,
high on the TANKS of the Palisades,
next to the fine new library; of the
invaluable aid given by the leading
citizens such as J. J. McGarry who
had performed the large amount of
rock excavation necessary, free of
cost; of the great services rendered
by Robert Carleton, son of former
Mayor Carleton, in the actual de-
sign and construction of the building,
and of several others prominent in
the life of the borough. The original
purpose of the building, the rector
said, had been to serve as a center
for social service; but this had be-
come more and more altered to the
idea of the place of worship COM
bined with social activity.
The Rev. James of Englewood
spoke glowingly of the impression
which the meeting had upon him, and
prophesied brilliant future. His
idea of the new church home was a
place where the people could come
near to Jesus.
Bishop Lines in concluding the ex-
ercises said that with the filling in
of Edgewater with factories, it might
in time become necessary for the
jewellers to be forced SO live in caves
in the face of the cliff; but that could
not be for long time any way, and
in the meaT.sTkxe the Pensioners
had fine building in an ideal loca-
tion. He said that the Edgewater
Church should be honestly proud as
being the mother church of the
Ridgefeld, Leonia, Grantwood, Fair
view, Coytesville and Fort Lee
churches.
The Bishop said that what people
were interested in these days were
things that moved; and this applied
whether they were animals, machines,
people or churches. People talked
about the decorations of a church,
but the finest decorations were the
godly men and women and the young
people who furnished the church S
life. "Stand strong for a noble use
of your new church home. Make it
a center and source of light, hope
and joy for all, so that it's influence
shall spread about all sides. The
Christian religion is the only one
that can remedy the sins of the world.
1t is the means by which your fac
tory problem will be solved"
The rector announced at the close
that beginning Sunday, December 10,
there would be two Sunday services,
at 1915 a. m. and 7.45 p. m.