Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-04-29
A MINISTER WHO
STARTED SOMETHING
By Walter Prichdrd Eaton

HNIiE Congregational minister in the rural
i village where | live has accomplished
something this last winter and spring which
seems to me worthy Of record. Ours is q
small town Of less than 1000 souls many of
them living on scattered and remote farms),
ana i'm common with good many other rural
communities it is smaller now than 1t was
fifty years ago, and very considerably less
active. Yet il still has the Old COLONIAL
meeting house" where the Congregatonal-
lists worship, a fine building, which could
easily hold ten times the present congrega-
tion it has Methodist Church, likewise, lar
too large for present needs; 1t has roman
Catholic church which, somewhat oddly IS
built Of wood ON the Colonial model; ahu'
finally, I'M recent years small Eplscopa'iah
church has been erected ot stone, IN the
English style, which doesn't IN the least III
on our village street
obviously, here is a considerable diversion
of effort and under modern conditions "t
least three Of our clergy are underpald' one
, of the church buildings is fast going TO pieces
for lack Of funds to repair il, ana we nave !"
practical object lesson of certain of the eNllS
that may result from denOminationalism'
TT WAS not, however, primarily because ol
| these conditions that our young CongreGa-
tioualist minister started his experiment last
winter. 1t was rather in part because III
common with all thoughtful persons he felt
that the most CRYING need of the times is
fuller understanding by all men OF the Nltal
problems of today and tomorrow IN part De-
cause he came to feel conNentlohaiitE
amounting to fUtility in the custom OF iiiu-
week prayer meeting So as substitute
for the time-hallowed prayer meeting ne
proposed TO substitute discussion cluD'
which should meet twice month IN Inc
church parlors and discuss pro ana con the
great issues this war has brought home 10
mon lie further proposed that tins club
should of course, be open TO anybody from
any church or no church.
Being Young, ardent, sincere and beloved,
he had no trouble at all in bringing about
the change but some of us who in the past
in similar small communities had tried 10
gather persons together for serious discussion
| had our doubts whether he would assemble
| more than a half-dozen persons-the usual
prayer-meetng number. But we reckoned
without the changes wrought by this war in
! even the most pedestrian intelligences.
| yTNIIE meetings Of this discussion club i'm
| | mediately took their firm place in the
| village life. with an average attendance, even
! during the severe winter, of between thirty
| and forty. The Methodist minister and the
| Episcopal rector became members of the
| Drogram committee TO choose subjects for
| discussion and secure a leader for each meet
! ing Members Of all the churches in town at
tended. and still attend, and also few who
| are members Of no church. Grave questions
| are threshed over in spirit of seriousness
| and a spirit of tolerance. Under the guidance
| of the sponsor Of the idea we have been
| meeting TO seek the truth, wherever it may
! lie. and while few sensitive souls have
from time to time been jOlted a little by this
process for the most part 1t has proved
greatly stimulating, II has brought divergent
points Of view together emphasized funda-
| mental differences sometimes, but more often
disclosed the real superfcialty of our diff
| feTences.
| TNOR each meeting leader Is selected, who
| II prepares a talk. After his talk the topic
| Is in the hands of the gathering. Among the
topics we have discussed are woman suffrage
prohibition (both because they were imm
nent issues), the meaning of democracy
(and when forty people discuss this yol
| realize how in need of definition the word Isl
| the determination of nations" interna
| tionalism, socialism (here again, in a rura
community, there is profound need Of def
nit,on and understandings universal military
training (upon which there the cleares
snlit a fundamental difference Of opinion
which will probably be reflected In the coun
try at large) and most lately the league o
nG lions.
So far there has been no difficulty in secur
ing leaders who have given earnest though
10 their subject and prepared themselves L
| the best of their resources. Nor has ther
| even been a meeting which lacked an inter
ested audience with plenty OF questions aske
from the floor and much animated expires
sion OF opinion Also, there has been n
| natf aallatlc blaeslnF. no Intolerance 81 rad