The Washington herald., 1915-01-09
CLergyn1en Praise Evangelist
Who Will Come To WASHINGTON
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manner absolutely different from that OF
any pastor in this city. One would hesi-
because the gifts that he has revealed in
his work demonstrate that he has found
his correct place as an evangelist. His
heart beats in sympathy with the
churches and the cIerGymen of the Lord
Jesus. and 1 believe he wants to be a
work and will.
! ut is true his methods are sensational,
but that has secured for him a hearing
among men that are unehurched and do
not attend any of our services He uses
slang that would not be tolerated from
any pastor or preacher, yet it may be
this use of the VernaCular Of the street
! that has made the man and woman who
are Indifferent to the usual methods of
presentation of the Gospel see their dan
ger as sinners and duty as Christians.
Possibly if we all could hear Billy Sunday
/ preach and catch the charm of his win
! ming smile that takes the bite out OhhiS
| slang and have our souls moved by his
persuasive personality we probably would
| come to the same opinion as the dtstin-
yuished president of Philadelphia's great
university and the eminent professor Of
| Princeton Theological Seminary did last
! Sunday. who after hearing Billy Sunday
commended his work
! "FiIled with a passion for souls. an un-
| dying hatred for all forms OF sin, with
an unshakable faith in the Bible as the
revealed word of God, with the joy of
personal experience Of Christ as the
| Saviour of men, and with n confidence
that comes from his frequent testing of
the power of the Holy Spirit to win and
| help men in the battles for the conquest
over sin and iniquity in every form. Sun
day summons men of every church and
creed to the crusade that will dethrone
Satan and enthrOne the Lord Jesus in
the hearts and lives of men. His power
| is due to his absolute dependence upon
| and his consecrated and concentrated ef-
forts to do the will of God through the
help of the Holy Spirit"
Rev. J. T. Stocking, pastor First Con-
gregationaI Church:
''You ask my attitude in the matter of
inviting Billy Sunday to conduct an evan
gelistic campaign in this city. Let me
say in a word that I am opposed to it.
and for several reasons.
Mr.. Sundays language is, to me. in
tOlerably coarse and vulgar. | have heard
him when | was told he was mild in his
vocabulary, but / should not want my
children or any other young people, for
whom l am responsible. to hear some OF
the language he used on that occasion.
Why should We condOne 1T promote in a
preacher the language We should not per
nit on a street corner?
Mr. Sundays theology is archaic, and
he condemns with brutal violence those
whose theology is different. He is en-
titled to his point Of view. but do not
want him to appear as spokesman for the
modern church. This is a day when
many thinking people are not finding it
'asy to reconcile religion with what they
Of people of this type Mr.. Sundays
preaching would make doubly hard the
work of those who are trying to show
that the church has a rational faith.
Mr.. Sundays attacks on religious
bodies with whose thinking he does not
agree are violent and abusive. In speak .
ing Of last Sundays sermon in Philadel- |
phia the New York Sun remarked that
what he said about the Unitarians would .
not make nice reading. shrink from ar ],
pearing TO have any part whatever in |
such attacks on fellow-Christians
Every man must make use of the |
talents he possesses. Mr.. Sunday has |
great and varied talents If he wants 20 |
come to Washington to DO good, let him /
come But ! am not in favor of his |
coming to represent our churches. He .
has doubtless done much good but it is |
by no means unmixed."
Rev. Joseph It. Kelly, pastor Of the |
Fourth Presbyterian Church:
When BILLY Sunday was in Scran- |
Ia CT I u i
his work. learned what | could from /
all classes of people. Scotch Presby- /
terian ministers of the most COnserva- |
tive type. merchants. and business
men, railroad people, factory and shop !
workers. city officials. and private citi- .
Zens. ] gathered information from bits
Of stray conversations heard in hotel ,
l0bbies, in the street cars, and in the .
street. I came to know Mr. Sunday
and his corps Of workers well, seeing
them in the unrestrained freedom Of .
their common home and from the plat
form of the great meetings in the ia
bernacle.
Il came away impressed with the
great moral earnestness and Spiritual .
power of the evangelist and with the
that God had raised UP an
exceptional man to meet an exceptional
in the church and in the
world. Under the burning words and
intense convictions of the man, the
reality and doom Of sin and the for
giving and cleansing power Of Gods |
love, became vital once more. If these
truths are preached in unconventional
and startling language, you cannot but Il
remember that John the Baptist and II
the prophets so preach. in their day. n
These facts are undoubted that through l
the work of Billy Sunday the following
results are reached:
Church people are reused from
Journalism and lethargy to more real and
vital Christian living; lives are regener-
ated and made anew: homes are recon-
the community is redeemed
from the rule of open and notorious vice,
many of the saloons are closed. and new
agencies of purity and clean living Gre
lted which insure a better citizenship
and consequently a purer municipal at
mOsphere
''Of the undoubted permanence OF the
work. one may learn from the many
in which Billy Sunday has
worked and where the influence Of his
service still abides. In my judgment
Billy Sunday and his band of workers
will be a blessing to this city and COM
nunity should we be able to have him
come"
Rev. John Compton Ball, pastor Of
Baptist Church:
Thank God for Billy Sunday. Thank
iod he is in Philadelphia and may the
ord help him to strike his mightiest
,lows against the strongly entrenched