Year: 1875

III New England and in Brooklyn may be re-
! sarded as a phenomenon Of an unusual and
interesting character. For long time these
two eyangelists have been addressing vast
crowds in various parts Of Great
Britain. Their ministrations have been
attended with d success recalling the
times Of Wesley and Whitefeld. All
classes have shown deep interest in their
work, from lords and ladies and princes
down to the great masses Of humber citi-
zens. The name Of Mr.. Gladstone has been
associated with some of their meetings, and
with others we have seen Lord haftesbury
and various princes of the royal family
| This success has not been without opposition
and resentment The old established


churches, scoffers, cynical critics and


men Of the world looked upon the


two evangelists as wandering Yam


KEGS. who had brought into religion


the same principle of success which Mr


Barnum had brought into business. Con-


sequently during the whole stay Of Moody
and Sankey in England we had vehement


discussions. On the one side their partisans
contended that they were the direct ambas-
sadors Of the Holy Spirit sent to reyolu-
tionize great kingdom and bring the people
back 10 the faith of the meek and lowly
Jesus; on the other side it was urged that
| they were adventures who cared only for
notoriety or gain, and to whom religion was
only another form of public entertainment.
AS Americans we could not but look with
gratifed feeling upon the fact that the
religious heart Of England was stirred to
its depths by the efforts of two of our fellow
citizens. We had the same feeling in regard
to the success Of Messrs Moody and Sankey
when they addressed thousands in the
suburbs and densely built sections
of London as when we read Of Mr.
Barnum's appearance at the court of Her
Majesty with Tom Thumb and the nurse
Of Washington. Apart from these
feelings, there was another Of pro-
found respect for the enthusiasm and devo-
tion to any religious creed which moved the
hearts Of so many thousands Of the people.
| Without caring whether Moody and Sankey
belonged to one Church or the other we still
felt that in the work which brought the mind
Of the masses to a consideration of the great
truths Of Christianity to a stricter observ-
ance of the Commandments to an
acceptance of the tenets of the Holy
Scriptures to a compliance with the
laws Of morality, honor and spiritual life, no
matter how extravagantly or grotesquely it
might be presented, would in the end work a
great good. No one denied to Moody and
Sankey, not even the most cynical critics,
that their aim was in the main just and
noble one. Their demeanor in the presence
Of this severe criticism Of a curious and sus-
picious nation was that Of men who believed
in what they said and sung, who did nothing
to bring scandal upon their professions
or their creed, and who particularly took
pains to decline any emolument for their
labor. Therefore, when these two evan
| gelists left Europe for their homes the gen
eral impression was that they had overcome
to large degree the suspicious Of the Eng
lish people that they had shown courage,
persistence and self-denial, and, whatever
their work might amount to in the end, that
it was work well planned and earnestly
performed.


And yet, looking upon what we see in
Brooklyn, and what has taken place in New
England, we are amazed to find the measure
Of this work Of the evangelsts. There is
nothing in what Mr.. Moody has said, SO far
as we can read his sermons, that is not said
every Sabbath day in purer English, with
better taste, and with as close an observance
of the teachings Of the Scripture, by thou
sands Of other clergymen whose names are
not heard beyond their own focks.
We read the songs which Mr. Sankey
sings and can find thousand other
hymns Of praise, entreaty and Thanksgiving
expressing with as much eloquence and feel
ing the aspirations Of the Christian soul. If
the religion which Mr. Moody breaches and
which Mr.. Sankey sings is the only religion
that can stir the souls Of men to contem-
plation Of our solemn destiny Of what use
are education and profound culture and deep
insight into the mysteries of the other life?
Of what value IS all this world of theology,
representing the meditations and the convic-
tions Of wise and gifted men for centuries,
the whole body Of our modern divinity, the
result Of lives Of study, and patience, and
inquiry and endeayor, when two sprightly,
active, superficial men may, in o morning
hour Of singing and talking, move thousands
Of souls who have heretofore been istless
and dormant in the presence Of the great
teachings Of the Church, Of the still greater
teachings Of Christ and the apos-
4 ties, which can be found in every
y library? Of what use are our theo-
logical seminaries and our schools, and
Of what value are the works Of the fathers
and the illustrious and venerable divines
whose literature adorns all languages, if
true religion and true pulpit eloquence are
to be found outside? Why is it that these
two oentlemen can achieve such results