The New York Herald Newspaper, December 28, 1874, Page 8

DEVOTION. Closing Up the Ecclesiastical Year and Preparing for the Now. MORAL STOCK-TAKING. | it, Frothingham, Leaving Christianity Be- hind, Preaches Humanity. —_+—_—_—_ FEAST OF ST, JOHN THE EVANGELIST | Dreams and Reality by Dr. Chapin—A Lesson for the New Year. CHURCH OF THE DISCIPLES. THE LESSONS OF THE PAST YEAR AND THE | PROMISES OF THE NEXT—‘‘TAKING ACCOUNT | OF MORAL STOCK”—SERMON BY REV. GEORGE | H. HEPWORTH. Rev. George fl. Hepworth preached yesterday | morning bis usual sermon on the close of the year, which was entitled “Taking Account of Moral Stock.” This sermon is always looked forward to | with great interest by the enormous congregatioa | who flock every Sunday to hear this popular preacher, and yesterday the vast edifice was almost completely filed by devout and inteiilgent worshippers. Dr. Hepworth’s magnilicent voice, bis effective deitvery and periect kuowledge of the art of rictoric have made bim one of the most eloquent preachers in this city of eloquent pulp:t orators, The congregations attracted by him are recruited from the most culti- vated and highly respectable classes of New York, and always embrace a large number of visitera from variuus parts of the country who are passing through the metropolis. Th:s was particularly the case yesterday, When the bright morning and | the balmy air invited the most negligent church- | goer to attend the teachings o/ religion and the | rites of devotion. AN OUTLINE OF THE SERMON. | AS will be seen from the full report of the revy- | erend gentleman's sermon which follows below | the preacher gave a vivid picture of the thoughts witch crowd upon a sensitive and reflective mind on the close of the year. He attempted to portray the joys, sorrows, bopes and disappoint. Ments whica are allotted to man in this bref period, and demonstrated in his clear convincing | manner the important lessons with which tnese varied experiences, these tiiumphs and trials of the heart are instinct. The most important of these lessons was to teach Christians faith in the future, no matter what the past nad been—that faith which comes through Jesus Christ. The rey- erend preacher ciosed with @ beautiiul peroration invoking the grace of God to make this new year | One Of spiritual julness and clearness, of abidiog faith and happiness in Christ; and, taking up suis ‘vnread in Ove 0: his Most Deautitul prayers, woich visib'y moved the congregation, he called down | the blessing of the Almighty upon bis beaiers and bumanity at jarge. THE TEXT. The reverend preacner took his text from Ecciesiasiies it, 1i—*Then I looked on ail the Works that my hands had wrought, and on tne Jabor that I bad labored to do; aad, venoid, ail ‘was Vanity and VeXation Ol spiril, and there was no profit under tue sun.” THE SERMON, The book of Ecciesiasucs, ne said, though not considered by ail as strictly Canonical, was yet so full of wholesome lessous that 1¢ was lo ve re- | garded Of almost equal vaiue with all the o1ber Dooks Whose authenticity Was undoubted. ‘ines bad changed since the days to which Ubis verse juded, but men Were (he same. Circudistances altered, but human hearts were stil unchanged. The humad appetites, desires, passious, were to be ‘ound in this nineteenth cevtury in New York Just as they Were in the time of King bavid. Solomon, Wuose words were quoted above, was a Mian Of great Ww Q and pom), aud thougu po=- Bessed Ol some piety had yet some very woruiy moods, It was lu one Ol these worldly mvods that he uttered the words of tne text. the surplus of bis income reat suow, in keeping an ostentatious e: ablishment and a luxurious country seat. “[ made me great works; I buided my bousgs; I) planted me vineyards; I made the gardens and Or- cnards and | planted trees in them of all kinds of fruits; 1 made me pools of water tO water there- with the Wood that bringeth iortn trees; 1 got me servants and maidens aud fad servants burn in muy house: also i had great possessions of great and small Cattle, abuve all tbat were in Jernsaiom before me; 1 gathered me also silver aud guid and the peculiar treasure o! Kings,’ &c, Then came the text:—''Then I looked on all the works,” &¢, He thought that this map generalized rather too | plainly, | SOLOMON ON DEATH. “The wise Man’s eyes are in nis head, but the Yoo! walketh ia darkness, and £ myselr perceived also that one event happenetn to them ali. ‘Then said | in my heart as it happeneth to the 1001 so 1t | bappeneth even to me, and why was I, then, more | wise? ‘en I said inmy heart that this also. t3 | once but often? That which distinguished Jonn | from tne rest of tue discipies was the singular | Vanity; for there is Lo remembrance Of the wise | more than of the fool jorever, seeing that whien | Dow ia in the days to cowe shall all ve forgotten. And how dictn the wise man? As @ [y01?"" The reverend preacher thought not. The | digerence between the death of the wise man and | that ol the fool was exceedingiy great, tne one leaving but smoke behind and the other a trali of glory. { ‘This was the hour When men naturally sat down | to look into their bank accounts, when they Struck their balauces aud tried to discover where they were, what tney had been and whither they had been drifting. ment and &@ great lesson of life. The man who was worth @ million mever lacked friends, fatrer- e18, sycophants, That wasithe pain and pevalty of wealth, and it wasa terrible price to pay lor money. Money was bardly worth tuis price. When cane approached the friends who ited their 4's to them yesterday stared at them as if they did uot Know them and never seen them be- tore, And neither had they seen them before, tor they had only looked at tneir money bags, and not at them, This ery great lesson, iudeed, that y ON whose breasts they snouid like to lay their neads to wee) turned tieir faces coldiy upon them in the supreme hour of their sorrow. Sor- row had a kind of chemistry in it which showed the difference between masks and faces. They did nut know each other until they had passed trom the patace where they bad every- thing to the hut where they had norhing, and then together to the cemetery. And yet woat portunities they bad. 0, it the fire of God burnt upon t them together, What & giaut there would arise | embracing &.1 the sorrow and suffering in this city! | A TOUCHING SIMILE, Perhapa they asked the qaestion what they could do for God. Well, they could practise His laws tustead 01 following their whims, ‘hey could coniorm themselves to the Ten Commandments and show how g and @ thing it was to be as men. They had @ thousand opporturines every any of giving sympathy to the sad and the aMiicted. G as to add to the gentieness of the Divine eye by the implicitness of their obedience to His | will, They provably remembered the story of the soldier at Chickamauga, wuo knelt weeping at a grave. Somebody asked him tf the dead were his father or bis brother; but he replied toat the young Mac who bad been killed, being alone in the worid, had taken his place, m oruer to save his wife aud childreo trom the pain or losing him, apd had thus dted jor pt They all owned suca agrave, Was tt an unknown grave to them or | oue at whose head they had put a stone aud in- | scribed on it the words, “ile died for me?” they believe in the saviour, and were they now at | Did the close of the year determined to put off the old and put on the new man of light and lie and of faith in Jesus, the Lord of all? THE WORLD'S EMANCIPATION. There was a mystery ands magic in the Gospel of the Lord which cola traps orm every soul and throw light into tne Garkest heart. They ail re- membered the proclamation of emancipation, and bow im one day the Chains fell away from every slave in tis broad jand, and each one stood be- tore God his own owuer and a free man, gratitude tor the precious giitof ireedum, Now, Q the Gospel of Jesus Cniist was the prociamation Christ had emancipation tor-ali the world, signed it and stumped it, to gtve ic authority, with the cross, the emblem ot His own suifecinzs, were {vee men. that when they stood on the thresiiold of the new year their faces might be turned toward Jesus as the great goal of tueir lives, hopes, christ souls! Mignt God gran ST. PATRICK «nis lor Christ's sake, CATHEDRAL. | SERMON BY ARCHBISHOP M'CLOSKEY—THE FES- TIVAL OF ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST. Archbisop McCloskey preached the sermon yes- terday in the Cathedral at the morning services. Taking for his tex: the 21st chapter of the Gospel according to St. Jou, he said:—How rich are the treasures and graces and blessings which are be- how plentiful the sources of spiritual joy whicn everywhere spring up around us during these days of boly and happy /estivity! To the Christian soul what subjects are offered for Pious and lofty contemplation! what tucentives to stowed upon us! virtuons and holy desires! what motives for great and generous resolves! How much to elevate, to puruy, to cheer, to strengthen, to console! The | unspeakable and wondrous mystery of a God-made man, Of 2 God coming down from heaven and being born ag & little infant of an humble virgin in @ poor, bieak stable; THE MYSTERY OF HFAVEN, { as it were, Comuag dowa to earth, takingit once | { more in its lomglostembrace and placing on its lap that peace which Is a pledge of reconcilia- | tion, of glory given to God, peace prociaimed | to men—suck is the festival which she Church has been celebrating | and still conttmaes to celebrate, which it bas been celebrating through more than eighteen hundred years’ time, and whici it wiil con- | tinue to celebrate from generation to generation with joytal and exultant heart. Her tones of giad- | ness have not yet died away—their echoes seem still sweetly lingering on our ears, and now we bave commingimg with them new songs of tri- | umpii, new cam@éicles of grace. And other festi- | Vals will come ig their turn to receive a higher and holier and mor@ beaateous iight from the great Christmas fest:t@l, Yesterday you celebrates the triumph, of Drst to shed his blood for the cause of his Die He expended | vine Master, and who, when falling beneath the ih Making & | stones throwa by his cruel peraect grand and beauteous the martyr Stephen, who was the vores, prayed, like his Saviour on the cross, for the forgiveness 0! those Who songnht bis Din0d ; and now to-day we celebrate nother festival, tat of St, John the Apostle and Evangelist? di him whom tne Saviour chose hs His constant and most intimate companion, as His dearest aad borom friend—lohn, to whom was pérmitied the privilege of laymg his head on the Saviour’s breast at the Last Supper; to whom, When He was expiring on the cross, He intrusted His owo dear virgin mother, and to whom aiso, after His ascension into heaven, He revealed ia a Mysterious yision the tutore fortunes of His Church on ealth, ~And do we not desire to pause here for a time tofoon pon that good and beau. teous character of Joun, lo sy More Closely the traits of that most remarkable s;.¢ndship—a {rlenasnip Where the human and divine biemted together in one? Do we not desire to trace tts {n- Quences and results and seek tor curselves [roi it some salutary lessons to carry away with us In our hearts, that we may meditate upon it not privilege bestowed upon nim of not simply being called, but in reality and truth being, THE BELOVED DISCIPLE, Others of the aposties were bighly honored, ana shared targely in the blessed Lord's aifecitons. | Peter was given the great and high prerogative of being the clue! among his fellows. To him were also given tne keys of the kingdom of heaven; he Was made the rock on whicn the Christian Church was to be built. James aud Andrew likewise re- ceivea singular Marks OF Lhe divine favor, und 80 in various proportion did ail the aposties; but of They desired to know how | John, and of John only, Was it said that he was much money they had at hand to meet the emer- , the disciple ‘whom Jesus loved.” This was bis gencies of the new year, and they reckuned up | the fruits 0} their works 1n order to come to some definite conciusion as to the value of tuetr busi- | Thess aud the propriety of its continuance. They in order to ascertain whether they were the true basis of success. KESULT OF THE RETROSPECT. For twelve months they nad beca striking out from the centre all round the circle, In some of the paths they hai found no fruitage, in others they had won praises o! rare vaiue. i they nad been better of this December than they were last they should be thankinl, bat if they were worse Off, they should yet not be discouraged. ern Church, “whom Jesus claim he had to such a privilege, distinctive trait and ieature, and it is that which comments him to us, whieh challenges our ad- miration, our afection sud our love; and, 80 true it is, if we we:e asked to say in What manner best closely examined toe principles of their business, to fait! | represent him as the eagie ol the Apocalypse or as | the impertaievangellst, not as the martyr extie of tg his eulogy—the best way to show fully bis shining perfections, we would not Patmos, or as the founder and father of the Eas' but simply 48 that disc joved.” And now, beloved brethren, you would ask me what it was that won for John the wouderiul friendship and love of bis divine Master; in what way he merited it; what We know that It was precisély in the household as tt was in | God at all times bestows his tavors as He wills. business—they ‘took account Of stock.” One of the peculiarities of the season was that every ring ‘of the bell brought @ new claim, perhaps 4 new bill, They were reminded of certain littie things, each one only a suowflake in itsel!, but ail to- Loge forming quite a jormidable show during his week. t was also Of the utmost im- portance that they shoud take in their spiritual houseucid; whould gravely consider questivns their frm stand upon their aoors a or never!” It seemed to him that th tain associations connected with this seasou of the year that made tt a hailowed time and should Make them turn to the future with a stronger . ye and asiouter Lesrt. He knew some ot their dis- appointments, he knew the storms trat had visited their households, and that it seemed to them asif they were hever to overcome their great aificuities. Some oi them had gone jorta to build up new homes for themselves and, beckoned by deligatiul dreams, they had gone on working aud Singing ail the time. GRATITUDE TO GOD. 0, what joys were theirs! A new voice froma cradle, like Sweetest music to the parents’ ear, otner joys, perhaps, aud they were filleewith the very periume of coniideace im the Creator, Some of them, again, had heen calied to other scenes. ‘Tuey had been called to lay their loved ones not into the bright cradie, but into the sad, cold grave. Allt e@ varied expe- Fiences had come to them, Iu a congregation as large 4s this all must have wept aad leugued some e. Now what was there in their lives that ele- vating and that was degrading durivg there last tweive monins! it made all the difference in the world whether (hey made doabt or taita the wateh- word ior the year to come, Let tim ask, thea, these questions:—What bad God doue for hit and them during these twelve months? Were they in- debted to Him lor an)tning? Were they not in- debted to Him for everything? And had they not gut down some Sunday afternoon and wondered how it was that they still lived, and whether the dissolution that was inevitable was a padniv! or a painless one? He ea many an cye must have losed in a revery like 5 | bei ‘LIRE's MYSTERY. | Had He not given to them continued life, aad ‘Was this not sometuing Worth grativwiec’ He (tne reacher) Was rrequently Sarre by thougtts like Phone, ‘They lived they knew not why ; ih they knew uot why. Could they aos 1 ove mouent? Gould they create it? No; iv was the giit o: God himself, and this marvellous mys- ery of ie and toe still greater yg a4 of deaty were now to be considered, It was He woo blessed i purpose and in every plan, aud ould tie withdraw His giance from them for an Instant Lue Would be mo More. Their only founda. | tion fov aepe was love, and if they would beileve that his love Was everlasting they coud look for. | ; od to the future with great joy aad complete | ait, 4 SoRROW'S TRACUINGA. rouble wag a great means of avisilual Drgves | own accord; yet He creatures by special virtues which fe beholds in ity, and, third, his marvellous charity, above ail the aposties 1+ can be said that his h ‘They are ail gratuitous, and none of us have any claim upon Him nor merit anything fom Kim of ourselves. They are ae by Him freely of His drawn to ceriain of His them, The virtues and qualities which so espe- cially recommended Jonn, a3 we learn from the Gospel aud tradi'ion also, were —First, his original purity; s¢comd, bis coustant and unfinching fidel- OF Jotn eart always remaiwed irée aud unshackled by any mere humaa affeclon, auy attraction io a fellow a ture; 80 tiatin coming to that divine Biasier he Was abie to give to Him AN UNDIVIDED HEART, and present to Him boti a boay and soul virgin- aliy pure ahd even most natural that lie Who had taken a nd cias¢. And Was it not most just virgin for His mover should Choose as His bosom friend that one Who most resembled her? John vas at all times, especially im trials and dangers, Master's side, When the other aposties led ‘ear, and abandoned flim fora tune, Joun's fidelity wearled not. He tt was who followed Him step by step in Hts dreary anu sorrowful way to Caivary. He it was, wuen the others followed iar behind, Who strode forward to take his place at Lhe toot of the cross, there with Mary and Mary Magdaleno to stond’ leariessly, yet at the same lime witha heart rent with grie, looking upon that Savivur’s agony aud waiting to catch His last dying accents, There it was that the great owa of glory Was givel to Joln; there was bestowed upon him a legacy such os was never given to mortal man before or since; for that dying saviour, looking down from the summit of the Cross and beholding that taitn- {ul three, bethougat imsell woat He coala pest do tor wer who had borne Him in ber original womb and brought Him, ‘A LETELE ENFANT, into the world. He ts now about to leave her, to break her heart. Would lie leave her without auy one to wiisper a word Of consolation to her, exposed to the world without @ guardian whom she could rely upon a8 she bad relied upon Him? But Whom could she choose? Is any one wortny | two act His part? Yes, one, His eye is resting upon him, that very discipie. He calls him, noc by the name of Jobu, but that by which He haa oltea been addressed Miinseli—“Son, son, behold thy mother; and, speaking to Mis mother, “Woman, behold thy son." place of Jesus; happy apostie! Would we couid share thy priv- lege. ould we coud be abie to cail Mary our nother and she call us and recoguize us as her children,” His Grace then closed by saying that we could gain the love of God by imitating Jonn’s yirtoes, In propprtion ag our bearts were pure would God communicate to us Mis gi Like gome Of the aposties, Many of us, W willing to accompany the Saviour to Jerasaiem to take part in a Supper, were unwilling to follow Him on Tue War jo Calvary, “How many @f ua!’ sald be, | “are wanting in piety and purity? So long a8 the way is easy and no great obstacles are to be encountered und overcome; so long as the sky | above 1s brignt and ali goes well on the roud be- | fore us we are courageous; but wuen the clouds begin to Jower and the storm is gathering and danger threatens, we turn and look for saicty in igaovle fight,” | CHURCH OF THE DIVINE PATERNITY. | DREAMS AND REALITY—A LESSON FOR THE NEW YEAN—SERMON BY THE REV. E. H. CHAPIN. ‘This well known church looked much as usual at the services yesterday morning. AJl the avail- able seats were promptly filled, and Rey. E. H. sweet side. Let me point out afew of the daa- gers to which this conception exposes us. In the | Grst place, this conception of Christ was outside | of humanity, belore which homanity mu-t bend itself, Here was a standard to which men referred | their thou, nts and jeelings—that took the place of their own consciences. He, being teacher, they neglected to siuay; He, being com- forter, they did not streugthen and verve their own courage. it there is any one ty. indispensable to. man- kind it is sel-dependence. Wo must not Worship anybody. Revereuce, love, aspire; but do not bow the reason or soul beiore aby person. | Tois followed inevitably from the setting of the hrist in the skies, for at once Dothing was spoken but allegiance to Him, aud tt was made @ mat- ter of duty to be iminersed in Christ. Lc was also NEW YORK HERALD, MONDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1874.-WITH SUPPLEMENT. : “7 preaa toward the mark for the prize of tne high calung of God,” and it t@ not too much to gay that he did the subject substantial justice, He showed the necessity which exists for the Christian to at all times press forward toward the goal, forgetting tne things of tne past and striving only to win the heavenly race. ‘This evening there will be # grand Christmas festival in the church for the benefit of the Sav- bath school, and, judging from the programme, tac little ones will have merry time. FIFTH AVENUE BAPTIST CHURCH. THE HEAVENLY GUIDING STAB OF BETHLEHEM. “Tbe King’s Star’ formed the subject of Dr. Armitage’s discourse at the Fifth avenue Baptist Sunenennee “sng that whicn ts not lovely, That which is true ta our family ts true ti ‘ound Mom is the Tudder of histone "ori ,over., | Tats claded by an elaboration of Cais thongtnet, aby ving encourage! discongo! Ld fed ristiang, iaaiie late and waver TALMAGE'S TABERNACLE. SERMON BY BEV. MR. DOWLING—RBTURN OF THE WEARY DOVE TO THE ARK, ‘The Tabernacle in which the Rev. T. DeWitt Tab mage is wont to preach was fillea with a dap pointed audience yesterday forencon, who misie@ the pastor, who had taken a day of rest. Proies op: | pit, he altar of each Numan heart and welded | i I ecupl 4 . | tuevitabie that Christ, being the perfect teacher, Gispip cosupie Bie. Secnag see eee th Dek | bhuuld make His voice heard in the world, What je music, which has always been one of th@ | came irom itt Ihe putting up of some divine pup- eblef featnres in this church, came fully up to its | pet Wiich must tell us what 10 believe. Another church yesterday morving. ‘the text was from | sor Morgan was, however, at bis seat at the orgar the second chapter of Matthew, beginning with the | @8 usual, and played with his acoustomed ex: first verse—‘‘Now, when Jeans was vorn in Bethie- | cellence, being assisted by Gabriel arbuckic, whost od | | only asked this 0! thow, that they snoaild live 30 irom four millions of throats there rose a prayer of The | very day ‘ey gave themselves up to Una they O, that he couid see tne shackies fal trom all of them, and that God might grant John taking the f Jonn joviog Mary ior his mother, - and Mary loving yohn for her adopted son. Thrice | urual standard of excellence. Mr, Chapin an- nounced as his text, Isalan xxix., &—“It snall be | 98 when a hungry man dreameth, and behold, be eateth; but ne waketh, and bis soul ts empty,” | &c. 1 intend this morning (be began) to pursue a | train of thought appropriate to the last Sunday in the year, and I shall dwell upon these points. I am going to speak of those who are living like the hungry man; those who are trying to live in a reality, and those wio are living as though reality were dreams aud dreams reality. Human lile ts not im apy sense a dream. The mooi of | mind which would suggest such an idea is itself | unreal. Such ideas belong to a false philosophy of | hie, Some peopie think it is especially a religious | view. [regard tt asa sceptical view. ‘hose who | believe that lile is a dream are encompassed by shadows, How can we believe that the glories of | a hereafter or the features of a much loved [ace | are but shadows? 1 cannot see any force In SEE-SAW PHILOSOPHY, in balancing one thing by another, and in believ- | | ing, as some people do, that becauee there is no but men have written whole theologica iT it. ‘This dees not sound like logic, Does Goad work by unaiterabie method aud inmu- law? This philosophy shows they know nothing of God. How can we be sure that there is any revelation or goodness? There are dreams of a perfect existence tiovgn this life is not periect; there are segments of good altnougi we ao not see tae whole disk of goodness, He wno demonstrates that tais ile 13 not i cannot demonstrate the reality of any- thing. The preacher whose argument is ta tavor | of the shudowy nature of things deleats his own ends, We must argue irom something to some- tung, and not trom | NOTHING AS A FOUNDATION, | ul we expect to logicaliy arrive at something. Go to | aga! not tabe those who have deeply suffered and tell them it is alladream. Kindness is in the world, and it is 3 world glorified by novie sacrifices, Any state- whica Moply the world 18 unreal are true, You never find pure-uearted men preacking upon tue worthlessness o1 tne human siate. Jesus did not preach the maxim tiat lie is adveam. Itis simpiy the statement of amoral scepticism. ‘the religion of Jesus male Ihe real. Christ Was a real veme; His joys and sorrows Were always intensely real. ‘hile is :eal! Lite is earnest!” Lut there are many peopie wao dream in life, aid to taem fife is adream. Man possesses immortal powers, and these temporal things are the ecaifoluing to bigher things, Tiese material things and exterual conditions do no; satisly the active and living man, They are them- gelyes the satisiacuon only jor atume. The maa w tuinks these ‘emporal things can sausiy 18 | Greaming. Man was sentinto the world to han- r—not to be satisfied by matertal things. forever Lungering and thirsupg = alier someting man works out ments. ven his inculgences express the boundlessness o1 his nuiwe, He 18 always seeking for something new—he Creams that be eats and drinks, ven dreams of the nignt bring togetuer the realities o1 the duy, aud weave them togetuer ad jantastjcaily as tne’ pieces of colored glass ln a Kaleidoscope. But these things do not Satisfy the high aime o: bis being. Ts dream Which leads man onward to higher things, which he considers the chtef aim o: his existenc strengthens him, and 1s really the thing he seeks. When he does attain tt I maintain he is not satis- fied, Ori he does find transient stis:action for the moment, (c is only a sign he is dreaming. The | point in lue’s experience 13 that we do not dream .forever, When death comes to this ing man bis soui 1s empty because he has done nothing tor his souk The next potnt ts the awakening. There are many ways of awakeuing. Look at the awakening of the prodigal son! Among the swine bis soul was empty, but tt awakened when is father received him. When we lose a dear iriend we teel ag though the worid were intensely real. Awakenmng is a religious word. This RELIGIOUS AWAKENING will come whenever man fecis the pressure of finite tuiugs upon his soul, or when he teels the pressure of bis own soul. AWakenlng itseif m- plies some reality. [tis @ great conviction wnen & man fincs that ne has been dreaming. and thay the world is real a‘terall, It is an awakening of our laculties to discern correcuy, How many men are spending all ther days getting ready to live. ‘They live oniy ‘nali Gousciousiy; but they determine to ‘live thoroughiy by and by. Let this be the personal application from fhe text, I would not have people to wait till | BBEt time to bezia to hive, but an AWascning now would Cth in time for the now year. the real- lty is nol that iife 13 short, but that it ts long enough to unold us ior alonger one. Death is a reality. Of, Low the passing year reiterates the truth of this! Those who were Wita us and in these seats last year have passed away. But througa all and in ail our Souls are real, We can ejoice, It there 1s anything {nat ts § -2 iknow thi ‘The chie! d:ficulty eeems to ve thut men say they believe ta Christ, put they do not use that beliel. ‘There will arise in us the conviction that our real being 18 more than tis; that lie Is notin what we hice. in what we are, Let us act upon the con- } Ftction, | LYRIC HALL. MR, FROTHINGHAM ON THE BEART OF crmistT-— A NEW CONCEPTION OF HUMANITY, The attendance at Lyric Hail was very iarge yes- terday moroing. platform was prolusely decorated with Mowers, the desk being entirely hidden with smilax and roses, Mr, Frothingham announced his subject as “Tne Heart of Chiiat.” Said be:—instead of Chriat being one person there are two—one the historical character, who lived, wrought ana was crucified in the reign ot | ments | not 8 Tiberius Casar; the other wasa spirit. How the , two came to be blended and cenfused I shall not attempt to say, and yet from the beginning of Christendom the two have been detaching thomscives, now We see the alfference. historical character. He was an idea, a concep- | tion, @ thought, an image of the human mind, Jesus was bora into mor.al lie, of mortal parents, Christ was not born into mortal life at all, had no mortal parents. The dates of the births of the two can be accurately determined. The Apostie and Paul exiled himseli to Arabia, and it was aiter his | three years of seclusion that Jesus, like Minerva Prayer 1s a resistless power, from the head ol Jove, aprung into life. Paul had never seen Jesus, and when he returned from | Arabia be did not seck those who could tell him , of Jesus, but pursued bis own conception, was the tdea? The Christ as conceived by Paul was different from the Christ conceived by Jesus, different from the Christ of tie Jews, Jesus called himself Christ, the Jews called Him Christ, bat that was the Christ ot the Jews— &pOpulac legenerator, a saini—bue still a who lived and had & career and died. The Ut of Paul was nothing like this, He was not born, but was pre-existent, He did not die. fie was oman, but not as otter men are human, He was human because He pitied, compassionated and loved; but his humanity was so transcendent that it took Him outside o: the category of haman character, This thought—ior a thought aod noth. ing more He war—zrew ull ihe idea presented, THE CHRIST OF IMAGINATION, took His place in tie eternal skies a8 a boing in every respect commensuraie and co ordinate with God as the eternal and everlasting head ov the Ciristian Church, Ativioutes were ascribed to Him & could never belong to % man—omouipresence, onmmiscience, a vewy possessed of gooaness equal to avaciute per lion, He was tn ail respe the mauifested deity, For more than a thousand years tiis Christ, seared on the heavenly throne, bas presided over the destinies ol Christunaom, Let us try to un- | derstand (his, Remember, Curst was a‘ thongnt, | Mota being; an idea, Not a person. To unde stand a religion we must take an ins an outside view, Now, as to the inside view, wiat aid this Christ import? A most gracious, mag- Navimous image Was set up beiore the aamirin gaze Of Mankiad; an linage that filled the worl with splendor, Of the utmost purity, of a tender. ness that no langasge can ever descripe, He Wae teacher, guide, consoler. To come to this | being, to be in communion with Him, was the | privilege of every living sou), But ail the qualities were not 80 sweet. Curist could admonisa and rebuke; He was the final judge, with the power of eternal life and death, But consider that thdugh the judge Consigning millions of souls to perdt- tion He was tne final judse only at the Inet , Moment. He took the baby in the cradie, He sieged every human vou!, and onty when every. thing had fatled was the poor soul abandoned, and | then who Was the persoa who was the arbiter of their fate? Nodomon; but tie king of all be- nignity, the prince of all swoe.ness, only He was put on the throne aud made the final judge, and BO His very judgeship shows tae benignity of His character. of the beings they adore. fore Christ came dettics ha Skies by One rave alter avother, and heve: image placed in the heavens s0 u ail Denienities as the takae Of Caria. MEN ORRATE THE ATTRIBUTRS | Thousands of years be- | been placed tn the was an here there will be positive justice here- great achieve. | Gream- | Dianet cherish it. | manity. | | ' } ; Methodist Episcopal church, preached yesterday | feoland think, + Christ was not an | What istered the child, guided the man; His spirit be. | | thing. It follows that Chr.st mast have a physical representative of Hts will on carth, and there was & complete expression in form and color of the in- was added man Catho- | visible Christ on eartu. One thin after another til at last we bad the he Church, the PERFECT EMBODIMENT OF THE DIVINE SPIRIT whose image wus piaced in ihe sky, A supreme pontifl at tie head, then a host of priests commis- | sloned to dispense tue grace which Christ pours ; out, The Rumen Church conceived nubly in its | deal. Now we know what came of that—an im- , Movable dogma, an uncuanging rite, an op- | pressive despotism, a power that was a dominion established in the name o1 heaven. Protestantism | came, Cirist was still in the sky, but there were | no more priests, no more rites and synrbols, and each huwan oui on its Own responsibility goes | suaigntway to Carist; but Protestantism retaing the worst error. ‘he believer, in Mnding his way | to Christ's heart, has to feel his way through & labyrinth of metaphysical interpretations; but to | those who were able to tnd their way tere cane @ strength and sweetness in- | conceivable. Christ was the comiorter, the | tuspirer, the sustaimer, the guide. Wherein lay the force of ghis conception? Firat, Curist was absolute Munk periection; secoad, Cir.st repre Scents @ perfect bevignity, The Christ was repre- sented as an immortal being who had given His | Ivfe sor everybody. fienceiorth the Christians Woo | hnelicved teit that ie had an immense debt to pay. But this conception of Ciirist, has it not Lost its | power? We are persuaded that the Christ was @n idea born in the vraln of an ecceniric man, and we jeel that the idea nus not been & pure blessing to the world, and thus we say that the old spirit is dead ; and hereaficr we moderns must grope on | a8 We Can, MUst Substitute a boox of statistics for | @ gospel, and be satisfied if we can make the | world a iitile better than itis. Well, tf it must be so it must; and itis oetter so, If the capacity lor | high moral enthusiasm, fur a great desire and as- | piranon is dead, then itt isdead, Let us bury tt | and go on our Way content, though not rejoicing. But, 1s it dead? I, for one, think not. Tue affection | | oO. the heart Bas Lot lostits glow. There 1s sull | the desire in humanity for something better than | itself, The old conception is gone. For us ! CHRIST 15 NO MORE. | The beautiful heavens do not contain Him, the | throne is vacant, but another conception arises | and takes its place. What isit? The conception | ot humauity, Another idea, another thougnt, but | ag firmly defined as was tne old. How do we get i? Forget tue difference o! races, aiiference of color, diference in brain and power; retorm, | equalize and tiumimate till you come to some- thing that all mapkind basin common. There 1s a soinething Which characterizes ail human crea- tures—a capacity of intellect, a reason, a power of | atfection, rudimental it may be, but 1t 1s taere in | every tuman being. Now, personify that; clear | 1ts Outlines, group all its ieelings and affec. | tions, set it upart in a sphere where | it can be contemplated and you have the | ideal, the great conception, the immortal thought of a being, shalt I say? Yes, a being. Lt { is tiis humanity that teaches, that guides, that | cousvles, taut inspires, How that humanity has | guifered, What crosses it has borne, what crowns of thoros have been pressed on its brow! its Edens; its Gethsemanes—tney have been as | Dumerous a8 the ages, As we think of it our | hearts are me]. ed. But you say this 13 visionary. | Christ is visionary. The vision of Christ was the j dream ola single man, It took centuries on cen- turies to Make tue dream a@ reality. The concep- tion of proryee J has as much capacity for becom- ing clesr and solid and effectual as the conception | oi Uhrist ever had. More than that—for notning | | could be more fanciful that that thoaght of Paul’s— | and I say that this conception of humanity, wild as | it may seem now, Will one day take on stature and | attrivates, and set itseif over the world as the { BENEFICENT RULER OF MANKIND. Do you say that tnis is tue dream of an enthu- siast? Alii remember, the strongest minds on the It is the dream of a multitude The practical English mind, the dreamy German mind, the vivacious French mind, the glowing minds of italy aud Spain, the earnest mind of the Americans, are i possessloa Of ghia thought, Iv is preached and pubiished in different tongues already. Workingmen have embraced it Who know bothing of Christ but lis oppressions; they are looking torward to this conception of hu- of persons. SEVENTH STREET METHODIST EPIS- | COPAL CHURCH. MM, ABBOTT ON THE POWER OF PRAYER, The Rey. Mr. Abbott, pastor of the Fourth street morning in place of the Rev. W. Uorbit, the reg- | ular pastor, who was taken suddenly sick and | could not officiate. Mr. Abbott spoke on the sub- | ject of the power of prayer, and, taking the text trom the Gospel of St. Jonn, he began by theorizing that Christ never intended when he leit the earth | but that he would leave His spirit bebind Mim in | the sbape of His aposties and their successors, The | aposties went through the world converting thousands, and sinc? that time others have fol- lowen <1 their wake, all permeated with the spirit of Christ, This 1n2nence has, to a great extent, decn gaivéd by the power of prayer, and | | throughout lite the Curistlan by his prayer | th i he reaches home at atte ue the grave: : ano siabing goul, reaching 1 aiter Detidy life, Ands consolaiion in prayer. | We are leit in <his world to carry out Christ’s | work. He came to,*1ve all men, and often uses | | we aa the cngine of fis York. | The world must be evafi.enzed by men. Chr. *! Well not to leave behind Hin. ae a aoaicmiy, Shoold continue the work He cstaw. “nh the Goa: | He said, “Go inio the world and prea. ith iw? led until every mountain top shall blaz@». + on t behooves us all to follow in the path He Jalu _ for us, He gaye His work alivays to men of zea. Need J show the apostles, the many martyrs who diced for tne sake of conscience; the great reform- . ers, Wyckille, Luther, Calvin, and, later still, the | Wesleys—novie men, Men wWiio tolled in the work of Chilst, and who went direct FROM THEIR WORK TO THE THRONE ? I am week, very weak, when I compare myself with these, and I Kuow how little my work must | be beside theirs; but this is no excuse for not | | Working at ail. Each must do the best he can, | and the work of the weakest will bear its fruit | and tellin the end, Tho Church bas risen above | every opposition. The stronger the persecution the purer and brighter the flame of Chrisiianity. | | You remember tue little church of 120 members which Peter went lo; they tiought they wanted | the Holy Ghost, They prayed and prayed and Went on prajing for ten days, and suddenly there | caine & mighty walriwind and 3,000 were con- | verted, Il you wanta revival in Seventh street GO UPON YOUR KNEES, ray for it and He will answer your loved the world too | rayers. I was reading the Otuer day of the Kane expedition, where a mo- ut of perilis spoken of, ‘the vessel was sur- rounded by icebergs, all drifting with a strong tido <0 the southward, The voyagers were sur- | prised when tney s)w the largest of the icebergs | Moving to the porthward against the poweriul current, {Lt was tne mighty undertow, By means Ot this iceberg the vessel was drawn many miles | on its journey. Your prayers are the mighty an- | dertow. Let the heathoa rage and tne rulers sit tn | council; they will be a8 nothing aga:nst the Power | which sits on high. There 13 a story of setters on the South Carolina coast, who, being in danger from the Indians, moved for a fortin the in- | terior, Ine men formed @ hollow square round | the women, and thus started on their march. iney | came to & pass in the mountain, where the Indiang attacked them. Alter defending themselves wit energy toeir powder suddenly gave out, They were at the mercy of their foe, when suddenly a woman of tue party went to ber wagon, took out | some powder sie had to reserve and went round to the men, serving them inturn, Soon after the Indians fed, When the little band came together olcs more tiey missed the heroic powder woman. The cry went around, “she is cyad!? But shortly aiter Ward she was discovered vit ler knees pray~ ing to God lor victory. She lad believed in the powder, but omy teusced tily im the power of r r, She fad opened pon the Indians from one o| the Lord God Aluhghty's ovttertes, aud the Victory wa: | CANAL theirs, | ok | STREET PRESBYTERIAN CHURCIL REY. DAVID MITCHELL ON cHRIsTtAN proaness. | | A humerous congregation assembled in the | neat little Presbyterian church im Greene street, | | bear Canal, yesterday morning to listen to the | teachings of tue pastor, Rey, David Mitevell, Of course there are more protentions edifices in New | York thao this one in Greene street—churches in which the eye Can resi upon exquisite fresco | work, magnificent Corinthian pillars and noble arches stretoming away to a ceiling made rich with tne choicest work of modern artista, and where the learned sentences of the fashiouabie ister are proluded with Classical muste ren- | tod by weil pald prime donne tw the accom: | ide view and | | paniment of costly orvans; bat it 8 ox. | ceedingly doabtiul whether there is in this city @ church in which more real good tg | done, whore the word of the Master 18 pro- | pounded with more zeal aad genuine earnest. | esa than in the one under the fosiering care of | Mr, Mitchell, The numbers of his flock are not what would, in the fecerat acceptation of the term, be called large, but if thoir ranks are some. What thin they are aiso frm and stoadfast in their Hy savora be second the good work being done by he shephoré als, Mate Lou vretteled yesterday fom the te hem of Judea, in the days of Herod the King, be- hold, there came wise men from the East to Jeru- salem, saying, Where 1 he that is born King of the yews? for we have seen his star in the East and are come to worsuip him.’ The reverend gentleman opened bis discourse by portraying the immensity of the universe as illustrated by the time required by light to travel from the sun and from the nearcr and more remote fixed stare to this planet. Coula the dwellers in those far-off worlds, with greater powers than we possess, and with more extended means of knowledge through the mediam of light, sce the passing events of this world, not that which is now transpiring would be revealed to them, but what happened hundreds and thousands of years ago, according to the time required for the rays ol light to meet their vision, As every point of time has its corresponding point of space, per- haps to some of those far off mysterious beings | bas just como a knowledge of the birth ot the Prince of Peace, the aniversary of wh.ch we at this season celebrate. Aliusion was then made to the various theories of astronomers who deaired to account upon a natural basis for the appearance and movement of THH STAR OF BETHLEHEM. These theories are, first that it was & meteor; second, that it Was a pranet created especially by the Almighty to herald the birth o! tne viour, and third, thatit was formed by a remaréabie Con- junction of tba pianets Jupiter, Saturna aud Mars, which made themappearasone, Kepler, by care- jul calculation, ascertained tbat such a conjunc- tion took place in the year 747 of the Roman Em- pire, frum wolch he concluded that the birth Of Jesus took place some six years earlier than is generally supposed. ‘This theory was beautiluily elaborated by the speaker, who showed how the movements of these planets in uheir conjunction would lead the Magi from distant Persia over the vast tract which intervened until its light shone down upon the humbie cabin which Contained Him of whom the prophets had sung and whose advent its mission was to announce. He then ree ferred to the new stars wiich have been dis- covered from time to time and which liave disap- peared again, aud said, ‘4 cannot sce why God should not nave sent this star to accomplish the | work assigned lt and then withdrawn it into the | Mlimitable realms of space ag were those to which I bave relerred. This star, perchance created at the beginning, after the sun, moon aud other stars, lor the especial purpose of announcing the birth of Him for whom and by whom alt worlds were mace; thus star wandering through the immensity of space threw its light over mil- lions of worlas beiore it stood over the humble cabin of the virgin mother, carrying the message for which it was created TO THE HIGHEST CULTURED INTRLLECTS OF EARTH.” In urawing @ lesson irom bis suvject the reve- rend doctor showed how the rst appearance of the Saviouron oarth was iilustrated by the mild radiauce of astar; a tuint lustre at first, enough only to start with, leading on to the brightness of tue morning star and the lull briliiancy of the greas lumiuvary, fillme the heavens with light, Thus toe spirit Of Ohrist iirst breaks upon the soai, but hon- est men with faith, like velescope to the eye, bring hearer and nearer the sun 1 righteousness, until the night breaks away and the full light of day beams upon the heart. May tre rays of the star which shone not alone for the Magi but for the whole human race, fallupon your hearts this Morning; that star that had swept through the heavenly arches, whose builder and maker is God, never turning to the right or le:t until its rays fell onthe human babe on the breast of its virgin Motner, the blood of man in his veins and God in- carnate in his nature, PLYMOUTH CHURCH. MR. BELCHER'S ANNUAL ADDRESS ABOUT THR PEW AUCTION AND NEW YEAR'S CALILS—A SERMON ON THE LOVE OF GOD TO MAN. On Tuesday evening, the 5th of January, is the annual auction of the pews of Plymouth church, Mr. Beecher in making this announcement yes terday morning indulged in bis yearly witticisms and’ moralizings on this coming event. In the course of his remarks he said:—Every year for twenty-eight years, as this has occurred, there are many persons who have recorded weir very strong prejudices agains: seiling pews in the house of God. The English papers have never done laughing at us, a8 they have done every year, and as they wili, doubtiess, doit again. I am perfectly willing that thoy should do this, I No churen that I know of inany civilized nation | that has not expenses—expenses incident the chureb If there are vhey mus! be met in some way and by some means. This amount ts raised in most churches by Gxing upon their pews an an- nual tax and giving them @ percentage of valuation, In the West and the South the expenses of the church are mostly raised by sub- scription, In England they are largely raised by taxing the whole community and providing im- mene funds from property around and about the churches, to these expenses and foundation institutions, 1 know that there are those churches and men who are so decided upon this as to reiuse to receive money for this. If you call that selling the Gospel why you may as Well say it is selling civilization or maternal love, It 18 just he samo as raising food for the world, he presumption, then, being that there ts no ob- “” to the raising oi the money, the method of Thy. the busigess of those who raise it. [tis doing it we internal economy. No persons part of then to meddle with it who havo any righ who are not injured are outside of it or > {3 Mot solicited. by it and whose opiniv. f churchea have We have found, and hundreds © Be found, that this 1s the best way of <™!9P0sing of tig sents of the church. Its democratle, 20d enavleq those who desire it to take more el/gi..lc scats a5 thelr means increage, There 1s in the? peyys no pre-emption right or anything implied ov 6x- pressed, The riciest man in this congrégation | will Dot have any rights in his pew alter next | Sunday; until then it his property, but alter that anybody in this community has aright to take it without any 11 wil. of strangers tothe pews wien not occupied ten minutes before the service commences, Mr. Beecher said that about one-third of the bd raised about two-thirds of the entire money. That js, the respectable pay for the democracy. The | Impression that tits church does not admit | aay but rich folks 1s a mistake. There are not 60 many plain, poor people in any church as in iymoutn, There is not a church on tue Continent where it can be aid with greater truthiuloess that the poor have the Gospel preached to them. (Appiause.) Mr. Beecher also announced that he should be hume on New Year's Day to receive ca.lers, from eieven to seven, at bis house on Columbia Heights, THE SERMON, Mr. Beccher preached a sermon suitable to the season on the love of God to man, He selected jor his text the first verse of the thirteenth chapter of the Gospel of St. Jolin:—“Now, beiore the feast of the Passover when Jesus knew that | bis hour was come, that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were tu the world, he loved them unto the | end.” It this person, Jesus, Mr. Beecher said, were ot A mad, or a man onjy, still on all hands, as much b; have tue inost deep faith, He must be regarded ag the greatest moral genius the world ever saw. There many who will Him a3 divive, who regard kim as the most #aulime specimen of trae manhood, but who have Aiarge reverence in this geaius, From this pas. sage Fou can Carly aWay things, inasmuch as there are certain deduc ions springing trom it that have acertaia degree of force and Wien take in a higher wisdom and which express mach of th @ fatnorhood 0. that God that &) loved the world as to send His son todic for men, There can be no question that the consciousness of divinity was intermitient 1 vr Saviour, That part of flis divintty was in relief, was obscured, There are hours when He had a tll cons setousness of this divinity. This, of which Jobn speaks, Was one of these hours. It came | most in the last days of Ills life, There ties latent in this dev aration « world of meaning, of power and of encouragement, Mr, Beecher here sketched what he supposed were the feelings of Jerus on His expectations of returning home to His Father, and iiustrated ibis thougnt by the feelmgs of those of are about to return from ands to their native home, Wirat @ Viste to foreign Mr, Beecher then Must the Aposties have seemed to ere Was Hot one among them that was an extraordinary man, except tt be Joln. Cone sider that these were men not only without gening, but without experience of the worldly uttairs of life; laboring mea; men who are not aroaver than their surrounding circamstances, Despite of all this He still loved them, Is it in tne power of any being w love that which is tot lovable? There ts thi In the Divine nature that brings out love, It bot dependent upon our moral character. ere lg in the Divine nature @ power to ve without the objects deserving it being lovely. 'e Jove our cbilaren for that which Is notin them, The babi Vuat lios in its mother’s arms has uo expresso: it in its adectionace power an absolute zcro, ve bherevore fa this (he Rermane idea attave These funds are not collected from the | | individual, but very largely from the community | ynusual was about (o take piace. There was ne Alter referring to the rights | yy those that disbelieve, as by those who | not worstip | his hearers who | cornet accompaniament was very fine, after sev- eral notices had been read by Rey. Mr, Dowling, # venerable, stout gentleman, and a collection takes up by the affable brethren who preside in tne aisles as ushers, the minister named proceeded te deliver his discourse. His subject was the return to the ark ol the weary dove, which was sent out by Noah, to ascertain whether tho waters had subsided. The ark the speaker likened to Ohrist; the aove to wayward sinuvers. The sinner, forget. jul of the great event that Christ was born and died for him, had fallen from the ways of grace and had sought res} for bis tired feet in the vain pursuit of thi pleasures of the world, Even a8 the dove hi found no dry point of laud upon which to rest im the deluge, but few back weary to the only rejuge—the ark—so must we retura to Christ, our only refuge in the deluge of sin and misery which environs such as place thelr affections and hopes on the pertsaable things of life. Ambition, success to the study of art and science, literary preferment, wealth—all are useless 1f we have not lived in Corist. There is no peace, no happiness, no rest ol conscience, and there can be no salvation un- less we return to the ark of safety—laith in our Lord and Saviour. John Quincy Adams had said that the most miserable years of hia le were those which he had passed while in the highest position to which the people of the natton could elevate him—the Presidential chair, How many sad instances of do:nestic Iintelic.ty, growing out of irreligion there are presenced im the hives of men of genius! The speaker welt at length upen tue moral wreck of the @reatly giited buat irreligious poet, Lord Byron, who, he said, died in misery. How often todo men say to themselves, in the quest of wealth, “Now, if 1 had so mach I would be satisfied an would ask no more!” Weil, they reach that pin- nacle Of money aug still they covet a higher cliff, ‘That reacned they are stili unsatiated. They can turn alone to the ark for rest and that peace which surpasses all else, the love of Christ. After exuorting his hearers, especiaily young men, to seek the Lord while time ts theirs in the ark of faith and virtue, that when called to their final ac- countability they may be prepared, he ciosed his discourse, Before giving the benediction Kev, Mr. Dowling aunonnced that his daughter, the widow of Zachary De Witt, @ former trustee of the church, who writes for the Christian at Work, waa then on her way home from Europe, where she had lost her husoand, who died abroad, He had been, he also said, torty years iu the ministry. | ‘The congregation, after the doxology, dispersed. ST. PETER’S ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH FORTY. HOURS’ DEVOTION IN BROOKLYN, The forty hours’ devotion, an office of the Catholic Chureh, 1s rapidly going the rounds of the parishes of the archdioceses, Yesterday the de- votion was inaugurated with most imposing cere- monies at the beautiful church of St. Peter, Rev. Father Fransioli pastor, Hicks street, corner of Warren, Soutb Brooklyn, Agrand high mass was celebrated by Rev. Father McCarthy. Af.er the mass the children of the sodalities and the parochtal schools entered by the doors leading from the side of the edifice, near the chancel, and formed at the head of the north and south aisles, carrying banners, Then the consecrated host being removed irom the tabernacie and borne by the celebrant, at whose side walked two pricsta, was carried slowly beneath @ gor- eous canopy, flanked by acolytes bearing lighted tapers and swinging censors down the main aisle. Beiore the host the vast congrega- tion bowed their heads in adoration; the boys and girls, facing toward the altar and singing toe “Pange Lingua,” moved along toward the door, and little girls of five and six years, bearing silver salvers laden with flowers, strewed them in the path of the priest who bore the blessed sacra- Ment. The procession moved out to the vestibule and up the norta aisie, across the church and down the south aisle, and returned up the ceutre isle to the altar, where the host was exalted upon the tabernacle. ' Tne adoration will last tor forty hours, until Tuesday next, when the masa Of repo- sition will take place. Rev. Father Malone preachea an excellent sermon upon the real presence of the blessed sacrament of tue altar. (CHURCH OF DISCIPLES OF. CHRIST. Rev. J. Hyatt Smith yesterday morning, at the Church o1 the Disciples of Christ, preached before a large congregation the anniversary sermon of the Free Baptist Sunday school, choosing for his ‘text the first part of the second chapter of { Matthew. ‘Tne discourse was inainly o relation of | only desire that they should not misrepresent us, | personal experience. ‘The services wero brought | to a close by the administration of the sacrament | of the Lord’s Supper and the taking up of a cob | lection. GLENDENNING SUBMITS. HE ALTERS HIS DETERMINATION TO ENTER THE PULPIT AND BOWS TO THE PRESBYTERY'S JUDG. MENT. } Inthe Charch of the Scandal, Jersey Oity, every | seat was filled yesterday morning. Groups lin- | gered on the sidewalk the entire longth of the | block on which the church stands. A stranger passing would at onoe conclude that something | lack of precautions against any emergency, for the entrance to the church was protected | by two poilcemen—one on foot, the other | mounted. Everybody who passed that way | soon understood what all this meant. Mr, | Glendenning had announced that he would oo- | cupy bis pulpit and conduct the services and | preach and continue his pastoral relations, not- withstanding these relations had been dissolved by the Juagment of the Presbytery. Fully one- s pai of those who filled the church went thers | from ict urlosity, they expected a scene, “If he getsinto that pulpit,” said one, “there wit .be arow, sure.” “What can they do about ite? gyld another; “a great many members of the cong,"¢gation, especially the old ladies and some of the Young ones, stand by him still. Then he has the Moa,‘Fator, Mr. Wall, and Mr. Dod and Mr. Moore at his ».'de, no matter what may torn | up. But leva go “nto the church and see.” | With these words one group, including @ | HERALD reporter, pawed in, Aiter some Squecsing and crushing seats were obtained. The services had not commenced, and it was evident every person except a jew inghe | Church was walling with high expectations, Mr. Glendenning was not in the pulpit, but was seate | @mong the congregation away from his tamil; | pee The pulpit was occupied by the Rey, Mr jod, Who Wis Counsel lor the defenco in tue late trial, and as he rose to open the services the crowd of carlosity seekers was doomed to dis- | @ppoinument. Speaking tn a subdued voice, he | said, “Betore opening the services, I will read’ for { yous, letter which your pastor has handed to me." @ then proceeded :— To, sue Mewnzns oF tux Cuoncm 4x Concnna. PROSPROT AVENU! bora he iy De. RET —I address to you this letter, set- ting forih my course of action and tiy reasons for the same, as due to you who have proved yourseives 50 | taithtul and so (rue to mo in my hour of need. Con. scions betore my God, who soare h the heart and Knoweth even.the most sceret thoughts, of my entire innocence of the charges f preferred against. me, € it that 1 could make i appear as clear’ to whers as it Was to myself. How much 1 iniscaicuiated the force of the careluliy | reiterated utte Nees agsinstme the resuitof my trial berore the Presbytery shows, From that judgment I have appealed to the Synod. This appeal stays all fare ther proceedings and leaves me pastor of this. church anti that court shall confirm or reverse the Presbytery's decision. Anil now the question arises, What sball [in tho “meantime dot You kindly and heartily r own Spoken wish is that I shonid continu: as herctotore. lo this my ow if hitherto itt to ininister to you heart likewise prompts me. been a joy me | tominister unto you in spiritaal things, 0 point you to Chris to contort you in, sorrow, Wii how ‘much | Breater joy would I now desire, alter experiencing sich tokens of your constancy, attection ant conidence, to serve you by the utmost faithiuiness and diligence’ in the discharge of ay official duties! But sadly 1 toet compelled, alter mature consid: not do 30, ‘Tcannot for your eak | tor our Master's sake. Tt migh | mean that I desired 40 brave the opinion of the l'resby- | tery and forestall the decision ot the Synod. It {Lwere so misunderstood you would share wiih tno in the odium of that position, “You have suffered, howover, more than enotgh for me alr 1 would not risk adding one feather to that burden, aor would I have the Presbytery or the Synod think that i esteem lightly or { inierpret loosely iny solomn vow of obedience to my breunrs the Lord. To avoid, theretore, even the pearance of evil in this matter [ propose to stand in he position of one who awaits at the hand of God ana ot hisbrothren clearer light in this dark and trying hour. and shall supply my pulpit with vretturen whose ministrations t cast will bring blessing and comiort ty us both. And ifat any Uine during this interval t shalt seem 10 you that the intarests of Christ's kingdom would be bost subserved by my resigning my pastorate, I pray You in all earnesiness be just to the churoh and kind to me by telling me so, You shall thon have my resizma- lion without delay, Your affectionate paster JUN 8. GLENDENNING, The services were then carried out in the usual way, and no refgrenve Was made to the case ex- cept that Mr. Dod prayed fervently tor tne pastor. Jn the meantime many persons who were near the door leit the church, The police on guard (CONTINTIED “ON NINTH PAGE} tron, to say that can for my own sake and ve misinterpreted to