Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-10-04
Strange Questions
Are Asked About
The Church

That the value of asking and
answering of questions is fully real
lied by those conducting the Uni
tartan preaching mission to be held
in All Souls church, Oct. ia by DR..
VIM. Laurence Sullivan OF New YORK.
City was announced today by New
ton f. Lincoln, mission secretary of
the Unitarian Laymcn's League.
AT each meeting there is a def
mite period scheduled for questions
and answers" said Mr.. Lincoln, land
human nature is such that large
numbers of people are attracted more
by this feature of the program than
by the mission preachers message
and method. 1t may we'll be that
there is a sound foundation for this
preference. A question fixes the at
tention upon a definite thing. Polit-
icaI orators recognize the value of
an intelligent heckler. Mission
! preachers frequently find their great
! est stimulus in the Intelligent ques-
! lions of members of their audiences.
"Of course all the questions do not
fall into this category. Many ques-
| tions, however, though trivial they
may appear, do represent the high.
est ambition to get at the truth OF
things DR.. Sullivan aims to give
| questioners of this type the greatest
possible consideration. For them
| and all others he has a daily confer
ence hour. from 4:30 to $3.50 p. NJ,
in the church office. For those to
whom this hour is inconvenient. he
! authorized me to state, special ap-
pointments may be made.
Numerous questioners quite pal
pably are seeking to put the mission
preacher in a hole. Others reveal a
degree of selfinterest in the .ques-
tions which they submit To all. ex-
| cept of two classes. DIR. sullivan
makes complete and courteous an
swer. He declines absolutely TO
| answer what he calls personal ques-
! tions,' nor will he respond where his
| answer might be construed as an at
| tack on the opinions Of those whose
| views he does not accept. Thus he
| exemplified a cardinal principle OF
| the Unitarian faith-inSiStinS on alb
solute freedom for himself. he main
| tains equal tolerance and respect FOR
those with whom he is not in accord.
From a we'll filled notebook MT;
Lincoln permitted the selection OF
several questions which invariably
get themselves asked. in some form
or other. wherever DR.. Sullivan goes.
There are samples Of the intelligent.
the trivial and those which are not
as trivial as they seem, the merely
amusing and those in which self-in-
terest appears to be the confronting
motive.
what do You thing Christ would
do if he came to Boston,
"Why should church, nsualiE
occupying very vaiual.e proper'a
and frequently existing solely as n
private club for its members, he eX-
cmpt from taxation"
"Ought America to offer to disarm
entirely in view of the christian Coo
trine of on-reSstance'
"Should we believe that Christ ac-
tuallv turned water into wino?'
Cant Christianity solve the I'M
employment problcm?'
"Was Christ a Socialism
"If Jesus were on earth what pol
itical party would he JON; h ~,
can. Democratic or Socialist!
as not state censorship Of litora-
ture drama. motion pictures, etc"
likely to he an invasion of nuhilc
nbertY?"
what do Unitarians think of Billy
Sunday?" ,,
The last question. said Mr.. Lincoln,
might appear to come WITHIN one or
the other of the classes Wthcr i'r.
Sullivan ignores. but in st. LOUIS ne
! admitted a kindly feeling for Mr.
I Sunday. coupled with bit @. feluc-
/ lance to call him Billy.
II think the Tnitarians, SAID l'r.
! sullivan. care rather sorry that ne
! hammers them so vigorously. ana
! they regret that he takes Such large
! fees. and that he has introduced into
the language of the pulpit what we
might call certain contemporary
cousness particularly so because un.
fortunately other ministers without
his gifts are copying him. But other
,,-ica T think he's all right