Year: 1876

blesses the giver, but produces the


very opposite result. Besides it


turns the church from It's proper


functions to become the agent of
commerce, degrading the sanctua-
Try often to the level of q COM


mercial mart. If it were proper


to support the church by such


means, why was it not ordained


thdt each church should have, in


addition to its spiritual officers,


certain commercial agents, who


might run sort of cooperative
establishment to make money


for the expenses of the services
of the church ? By the prestige
of its name it could command


patronage, and thus succeed in


not paying expenses, but pay q


a dividend to the members. 1t is


clearly evident that such occupa-


tions and engagements are foreign


to the true functions of church.
But still these affairs 60 on, and


stingy christians enjoy their


preaching, at least as much of it


as their stingy souls can digest, at
the expense of others, or, if the


money is paid out of their own
pocket, it brings them no bless
ing, for the Lord will scarcely
count the price of a dish of oys-
ters to the credit of cheerfully
giving. But in the various meth
DDS by which christians thus evade
their duty to the cause there is
much that is simply ridiculous =
We can readily see it, if we would
place as actors In the scene the


worthy saints of old. The Prim-
Iitive Church was poor and needed


help. Let US get them up mod.
ern fair. Let Paul bring a dainty
little tent and donate it. Place


Peter and John over on one side
of the festal hall with cart load
OF fish, sardines, salmon and mack
eref Let Lydia bring the purple


and linen, Dorcas few made-over
old clothes. Let them by adver-


tising and synagogue announce


ment, gather together publican
and sinner, Jew and Gentle, rich


and poor. Then send around in


the crowd pert damseis to button,


hole the unwilling purchasers. =
Let them 60 for Nicodemus =
and the centurion and Dives, and
make them shell out denarius
and talent until their pockets are
empty, and enough money is ee-
cured to buy each one of the apos-
ties q rams horn to aid in subdu-
ing walls of wickedness and sin
of the Jerichos they were about
to commence. What sort of q
commencement was this for the
foundation of a aspiritual kingdom ?
But even such scene is not
more incongruous than many of
these gatherings nowadays.
Shall we take the reader to


and set him down in the midst Of
the Presbyterian pipe organ mas
querade? There is pious old ell
der, with elongated moustache
and powdered hair, promenading
with one of the lambs of the fold.
Yonder is young deacon whirl-
ing around the room twenty times
to a minute, while the precentor
of the church is bawling out, "bal-
ance all" as the recurring meas
ure of music marks the proper
time. That organ would surely
pipe happy memories IN the Sab
bath devotions. Thus we might
take the oyster stew, the railroad
excursion, the pantomime and
Thespian rehearsal, and find them
all ridiculously inharmonious with
the spirit and decorum becoming
the object for which they are os-
tensibly provided. They are all
improper as a means of raising
the revenues of a church, and
ought to be eschewed in favor
of the gospel method of giving,
which alone may bring suitable
blessing upon the. giver.