Year: 1879

THE PULPIT-ITs PLACE IN THE MODERN


woRLD-sERMoN BY Mr.. 0. D. FRoTHING-


HAM.


The impression has gone abroad, said Mr.. Froth-
ingham, in his sermon at Masonic Temple the
subject of Thc Pulpit and It's Place in the Modern
World" that preaching and preachers are ont Of
date that in future the influence of the spoken word
will daily become less and less. In speaking to the
subject the preacher went to say that the people
are told of the small number Of churches and how
few church goers there in this great city;
that the crcaking OF pulleys and the whistling
of ropes the only sounds heard. and that
the masses too busy with their own interests
to think of attending to preachers or preaching.
The time was when preachers were the eminent men
of the community then they possessed almost an
exclusive university training: then there were
newspapers magazines. and preachers were the
oracular men of their own times. That time has
passed away for the preachers as well the Church
Now books and newspapers plentiful; people
read they run, and there is no need of going to
church for information any subject. Literary
men, q class. do not go to church; they have their
books and writings scientific and philosophical men
do not attend church. for they pursuing at
home their Investigations and following their own
lines of thought There is another thing too. that
keeps people away from church, it is that the living
age loves amusement aud does not TO be always
graphing with great thoughts and the minister
III
pies hearts through speaking Of the eternal law and
the mrthfulness that is wholesome everywhere else
sinks into nothngncss when brought into the pres
ence of the doctrine of eternal life. Hence. this
lighthearted, reading age does overthrong
the churches.


The spirit OF scepticism Is abroad the preacher
has set Christian themes to deal with under his own
Interpretation and the congregation impatient to
listen open secret about which there is lurk-
ing scepticism in the minds of even the most ortho
dox OF the leading Christians. The most liberal
Christian preacher must assume, under divine
Christ the utter helplessness of humanity and also
the divine inspiration of the Bible The clergyman
does not put himself on the plane of layman; all
his arguments presented with spirit of
dogmstism it is in his profession to do
so. Now, this is disagreeable in the days of
papers, magazines and conventions. when men de-
The community is getting tired Of clerical dictaton
and this is another reason why pulpits getting
into dsfavor Why, then. it might be asked. IL all
these things be true, do crowds still gather to hear
men preach? The truth is that churches are, after
all, not much deserted some people claim them
to be. There more living minds in the churches
to-day than there have ever been heretofore. The
for this is that there hangs q
singular fanaticism about cardinal doctrines
always interested about them, for
there hours that instinctively
when we wish to hear the Word spoken Of There is
that mysterious, strange thing called death--nevcr
to be escaped-whch Is fact In ali our histories,
and no philosophy has enabled man to
heralded in by the preacher. 1t with the
Hebrew. the Christian. the Protestant ages and it
will be so with the coming sges-liberaty and love
among mankind