The New York Herald Newspaper, October 4, 1875, Page 5

ft GOSPEL PREACHING. Henry Ward Beecher in the Harness Again. HEPWORTH’S SERMON SERIES. A Discourse Which Lets Light on His Conversion to Orthodoxy. REFORMED — EPISCOPALIANISM. Bishop Cummings Opens Another Place of Worship. PLYMOUTH CHURCH. ¥MST SERMON THERE BY MR. BEECHER SINCE THE ‘TRIAL—SELFISHNESS AND PERSONAL POWER—A PLEA FOR VOLTAIRE, Mr. Beecher preached the first sermon since his re- turn from the mountains in Plymouth church yester- day morning, and the occasion drew together one of those vast assemblages which have become the rule in that edifice, Fully 8,000 people, crowding the galleries ‘and aisles as well as the body of the church, beamed smiles of welcome upon the preacher as he took his seat upon the platform, On either side of his chair stood a large basket of autumn leaves, ferns, trailing vines and lilies, and from the foot of the reading desk depended a dove formed of tuberoses, with its wings outspread. Mr. Beecher seemed to be in as robust health as ever; but his manner while offering the prayer and while the first hymn was being sung was indicative of powerful emotion resolutely suppressed, His air was subdued and at times even abstracted, as if he were recalling the bitter ordeal through which he had passed since the same scene had been enacted on his arrival from the mountains one year ago. In reading the announcements before the sermon Mr. Beecher referred to the untimely death of the lato Dr. Porteous, whom he characterized as a man en dowed with great abilities—abilities which had never reaped their appropriate fruit—and stated that a con- vert would be given next week for the benefit of his or- phan daughter, Ethel, who was left destitute by the death of her father. Many persons thought pleasure Was unreligious or non-religious, but that was a mis- take—pleasure was an outgrowth of religion. When a man puts together a fine piece of machinery it was ex- pected by these people that it would. run smoothly and without jarring, yet when God put a buman soul to- gether and drew it toward Himself they thought it ‘ought to squeak at every axle and in every joint, THE LAW OF SELFISHNESS, ‘He took for his text the seventh and eighth verses of the fonrteenth chapter of St. Paul’s epistle to the Ro- mans, We hear much, he said, of being true to one’s self, of self-centred men, of well balaneed souls and self- contained men, The little truth that is in these phrases for the most part shines into darkness, and the dark- ness does not comprehend it. They are a kind of cant phrase and watchword of a scheme of selfishness. Neither strength of nature nor nobility of charactor nor heroism of conduct is found in one who finus his centre of influence in himself, It is our alliance with great natural laws, with the race and with God, that makes Qs significant, All true greatness is centrifugal—work- / (ng out from the cgntre, and not in toward it. The idea! manhood is a nature that perpetually aspires to some- thing greater and better than itself, The law of selfish- ness increases as we go toward the brute; it is a neces- sity of tho under creation tg be self-seeking. We mark the degree of removal from the brute creation, not only by the increase of mind force, but by susceptibifity to influences from without and by its power of reflecting its energies upon others, rather than of absorbing them. A man must find his centre of usefulness outside of himself, or be like a top which spends its existence in whirling round its smallest point, Beauty, intellect and force, the old Greek tmnity, are recognized by Christians only as auxiliary. There is something higher and better than either ot them—emotion, out of which comes disposition; and the great apostle never ttres of affirming this pecuttarity of Christianity—that it does not stand i tonsequence of intellect or by reason of poetry or rhetoric, or grace, or art, or beauty; but that it is a ventral power which springs from the influx of the divine feeling and the kindling of human feeling—and feeling is the man. The highest influence, then, ac- cording to the Gospel of Christ, is personal ‘influence. Men are affected more easily and more universally by the lower influences than they are by personality, as the rapacity for receiving is one of the marked character- Istics of development in man as differing from the brute ereation. The susceptibility to the highest forms of mind Influence marks the exaltation of man. We have had much investigation and much light thrown upon influ- ences which affect national and individual character— climates, occupations, laws, governments and indus- tries. These are emphatic powers, and they are more nniversal because they are easy and because we are 60 much animal, yet, because we live on so low a plane that we are influenced by the lower influences which exist in nature. But the higher susceptibilities do not depend on climate or any of these influences. Climate does not make a fool or an artist. Persons have more wer than anything else. This is seen in the house- Boia; what the father and mother are determine largely what the child shall be. PERSONAL POWER, the power of a living soul on living souls, of life on nascent life, is almost all-powerful, and when we see this personal influence properly exerted we soe the | highest triumphs of force to be those which spring from 1 personality exerted on liv- ing personality, it is the soul that has in it the most stimulus for souls. It is life that can strike fire and kindle life again. We are prepared to understand then that Christ is the man- Mestation of God in a form which can immediately operate upon human life. The world has spentages of time in exploring what is the nature of Christ as ro- lated to the Eternal Father—-to the Godhead: ‘That is & matter totally beyond the search of man’s experience and penetration, and all speculation and study upon it are labor lost, ‘The question for us and which is within our reach is, ‘What is He to the huwan soul?” I don't | think a feeling of love could be created in the human soul towards a being which could not be grasped through the senses, which the imagination could not take hold of, It must be quickened by the senses and Sensuous knowledge, I think that is what the pstle means when he save that we see God through a glass darkly, when we think of Him as @ pure spirit, because we have never seen one, ERRORS OF SPIRITCALISM, A ghost must reduce {tscif to such circumstances as to make itself recognized by bodily tests, If it is not pet under these circumstances, if it is not appreciable the mind itself, who knows it? Who sees it? You cannot see a spirit. You are not equipped at present with those faculties of communication which would enable you to take hold of spirits, pure and simple. And so Christ became incarnate that He might speak to us incarnate. I am free to say that I read Greek a great eal better in English than in the original Greek, and so Homer is no Homer to me till he is translated into my language; and God may reign, heaven chant pladness, and the eternal sphere be iilled with Hisglory, yet He is no God to me until I behold Him under those Ponditions in which ali knowledge must come to me— ponditions fixed in the constitution which He gave me, The manifestation of Christ Jesus in God was to bring Into the world a personal power which men could un- derstand, and thus be brought into a more comprehen. sive sympathy with God. I donot say there was noth- ing more than that, for no doubt there were just as many effects from the coming and death of Christ on the other side, in heaven, CHRIST 18 NOT* LITERATURE. Mr, Beecher went on to speak of those who asked why it was that Christ in His lifetime did not write a record of all His acts, or why His apostles did not do it for so many years afterward, He said Christ is not lit- srature, nor is He a Jittérateur. He ix a power. The revelation of God could be made manifest by a few acts ts wollas by many. If Christ accomplished the object for which He came we don’t need all the steps by which He achieved it to be recorded. I drive the wheat into my barn, but not the straw—not the chaff, And yet the thaff was the mother’s bosom to the wheat while it was growing; but I don’t eatit W you have the sult, the wheat, you bave the harvest. Now there is much historical straw that is not put down to God, that 48 not recorded of Him, There is, by reason of the op- |, position of theology to every new scientific truth that tomes up, a widespread opposition to the Church and Bvery widespread scepticism, There were times when seepticiem ‘was malignant, when religion represented it- velf by a physical Church and a Church so despotic and tyranuical that they were right to be sceptics, VOLTAIKE WAS MORE A CHRISTIAN, with all his ecofling, than were the Christians of his , as they were represented by the hierarchy of a Gespotical and bioody priesthood. Speaking of those who describe the Lord only as despotical judge, Mr Beecher said those who teach that He wade man ai zero then demand under pain of eter- nal damnation that he shall stand at summer heat, “if that be God then there cannot be any devil. 1 protest against such profanatiem of fundamental moral ideas. I protest against every theory that represents the Divine nature as making man constitutionally an outcast, throwing bim to the bottom, and then eres | him under rules of such elevation ag exist in heaven It NEW YORK HERALD, MONDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1875—TRIPLE SHEET. Dance wast than anything which Dante imagined in e CHURCH OF THE DISCIPLES. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS—THE SECOND OF MR, HEP- WORTH'’S SERIES OF SERMONS, The lovely weather yesterday called out a much larger number than usual to hear Rev. George H. Hep- worth, who has begun a series of sermons on special points in religion, the second of which, an interesting discourse on the difference between the Old and New Testaments, he delivered yesterday morning. After the sermon, it being the first Sunday in the month, tho ceremony of the Lord’s Supper was observed, Mr. Hepworth’s text was Matthew, vili., 10—‘' Verily I say unto you,” &¢, The use of the personal pronoun “1” ig one grand peculiarity of the New Testament. It makes that book either an immense imposture or else & grand revelation. If we turn to the Old Testament, for instance, to the book of Isaiah, we find such a phrase as this— But now thus saith the Lord,” and you can see behind this sentence the consciousness on the part of the speaker that he is simply an instru. ment in the hands of God to accomplish a purpose— that his hood is hidden behind the fact that God uses him, In the New Testament the phrase is changed and the authority is shifted. It is no longer “Thus saith the Lord;” it is, “Verily, 1 say unto you;” and therein we find an assumption of power which makes the Bibie inf- nitely valuable or inflnitely worthless, and so I ap- proach the second sermon in my course on the place Christ occupies in our spiritual experience with diff- dence and hesitation overwhelming. Feeling how impos- sible itis to do anything like justice to the subject, I can only pray God will use my words and arguments with His spirit go as to convince you of the truth of the words I speak. It isa glorious privilege to speak for Christ at any time, but it is also A HEAVY RESPONSIBILITY, I want to say, in the first place, that the idea of Christ as a leader is at the centre of the Christian dis- pensation. If you leave Christ out altogether you might as well burn the Bible to ashes; if you detract from anything which Christ claims for Himself by a single iota you take the whole underpinning from the structure, and the whole revelation from God falls to the ground. Christ is everything to one’s conscious- ness, or nothing. We cannot believe a part and reject @ part, because one foundation supports the whole structure, If we believe that the Bible is, perhaps, a better book than those which come from printing presses in general, yet not a final authority, we are, intellectually and epir-* itually, all afloat; we acknowledge that as yet there is no standard by which to measure our purposes and our lives, There is something peculiar about this leader- ship. He said He eame to establish a kingdom, and all ambitious men in the world grew envious. But Christ did not say He intended to establish a kingdom upon the brilliancy of 100,000 bayonets; neither did He say that the loyalty of His kingdom was the loyalty of men’s hearts. He simply said He came for the pur- pose of BUILDING A DYNASTY, but made no comment on it whatever. But these 1,800 years have been a commentary, and we see Christ was as far above the Cxsars and Napoleons as the stars are above us, The prediction went forth from Jesus after He had begun the establishment of His kingdom that it was to last forever; this earth might burn up as a scroll, but not a single jot or tittle of His kingdom ever would decay, and the Apostle tells us that the day shall come when every voice shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lo rd and whatever is done shall be done to the glory of the everlasting God our Father. And so this simple utterance of Christ's has been proven true by the prophecy becoming a fact, I have said Christ is the central figure. Brethren, if we look into the philo- sophical schools of Athens we find the gifted and learned teachers standing in the midst of their pupils uttering facts, speaking truths, without feeling that argument is possible; it is enough that they speak. And when e disciples argued with each other it settled all questions of difference when one man, turning to another, would say “ipse dixit’”’ (he himself Said 60), “Aristotle told me so,” “Plato yesterday gave utterance to those very words,’ and everything in the shape of intellectual resistance is extinct in an instant; ana brethren, it seems to me Jesus occupies preciscly that place in our experience. What He says 13 true, be- cause he says it, and having once settled the question of His right to speax, then we have settled the question concerning the authority of every utterance that pro- ceeds from His lips; He requires not a questioning or doubting loyalty, but an unquestioning obedience, and He assures us that if we will contide 1 Him He will not only preside over our present lives, but He assures us of life to come. Now the personal allegiance to Jesus is the basis of our progress in Coristian life; without it we cannot get on atall. Unless you can see that power, we part just here. Personal allegiance to Christ is the theme ia puipits from Sunday to Sunday all over the globe, That allegiance indicates gratitude on our part; dependent on Him for everything, are we not ready to concede this much? What could we do but for Christ; when we are beset by life’s temptations it Is His voice that cries ‘Come unto me and I will give you rest.’’ He is balm of Gilead to our wounds. ‘hen our heads are bowed in sorrow who is theré on this no planet that can assuageour grief? Not one Wis Onrist in whom wo ought to live and in whom wo | have our being, who can alone satisfy our hun- gry and thirsty souls, and this depeudenco but gives | birth to the gratitude which is the central force and fire of all true religion. Love and gratitude are born of the same mother; they are one, and the only power there is in any religion that moves the world tw progress is just here, ‘© ought to be grateful to Christ, and our gratitude should be uttered not only on Sunday but every day; not only with our lips but in our lives, We ougtit never be ashamed, in whatever company, to stand loyal to the source of our joy and our consdla- tion. Now I have said this personal allegiance to Christ is A MOTIVE FORCE, Brethren, we cannot overestimate that force. The man who is uncertain aboat nimseif strikes in the dark aiways, The man of conviction and steady purpose se- cures success beyond doubt. The man whose religion is all afloat—who thinks one thing to-day and another thing to-morrow—he accomplishes nothing; his life comes to naught. But when aman feels every fibre of his nature centred on the fact that man has an aim and @ high one, that he has @ goal, and that goal a heavenly one, his progress upward, though it may be slow, is yet sure, aud while others grovel he rises. He shall soar | above the mountain and lis eyes shall take in the full landscape which the hand of God has made. There is no power like the power of a conscious allegiance to a person who {s our head, our leader, our finai authority. See its power, We have illustrations of it all about us. Perhaps you have been to Europo and travelled the Coutinent over. You have seen the tlag of Eng- land waving in the breeze. It is nothing more to you than a piece of bunting; it does not stir an emotion; it is a strange flag. Youcross the channel and you’ see the flag of France, That, too, is a stranger. You } acknowledge no allegiance to ft. "You travel to Spain and to Italy and to Germany, and in each country you see a flag that belongs to that section of the world, and yet they are all bunting to you. But some gala’ day, perhaps, you see floating in the breeze the flag of your own country, and the very sight of 1t makes your heart palpitate and the blood rushes with tingling force to your cheeks, and you feel ready to sacrilice everything jor the sake of that which is more than bunting—the token of allegiance, the symbol of loyalty of a great people. So mighty is this feeling that when the Swiss soldiers were in Spain there was a royal edict uttered attaching a severe penalty to any one who should play the “Ranz des Vaches,”’ their national song, for it is said that it melted the seldiers to tears when they heard it, and they were worthless in the fight while this reverberated in their hearts, When the Druids in olden time were drawn up in battle line the priests would talk to them of their allogiance to their flag until every mau’s trembling hand grasped the spear and Tus! ‘MH IRRESISTIBLE PORCE upon the enemy and the day was won—won not by muscle, but by the loyalty of a nation’s heart toa na- tion’s Hag, at is the kind of allegiance Christ re- quires and ought to have—an allegiance that fills u: with joy; an allegiance that we owe because He is worthy of it, because He has suffered so much in our bebalf, 0, brethren, it I could only make you feel this! Howare we ever to pay Him back? He not only left heaven, but lived on earth, for our sake, and died the death of ignominy and guilt that we might have life and have it more abundantly, Do not think Iam making mere assertions. Let me call your attention to one or two facts which tell us we ought to give our al- Jegiance to Him. Look at your leader and see who He is, Ido not dare to compare Him with any man, for it seems sacrilege, but perhaps it is the best way to il- lustrate this point. Noone who has read the New ‘Testament carefully can help the feeling (and a curious one it is) that Jesus Christ was from the beginning to the end of His career A PRRPECT STRANGER on earth. He makes you feel as though He had come from another sphere and was not yet used to the pe- culiariies of human nature and buman fe, Now all human men have beon affected vy age in which they live, governed and controlled by it; the prejudices of the hour were their prejudices; the feolings of the time were their feelings, You could pot take Washington out of the century in which he lived to put him jn this without making an anomaly of him. Great, noble and true in his own time, loving his coum- try, yothe balonged distinctly to the time in which he lived. Itt also true of Luther and Calvin, those great heads of religious reform, These men were not above the age in which they lived; they were colored by the atmosphere which ‘filled their lungs. Turn to Christ ag @ mere actor on the stage of the world’s his- tory and what do you see? This curious fact—that from beginning to end he was THOROUGHLY ISOLATED, He walked on a plane of His own; His feet were on earth, but His head was in heaven, Jesus was the only man jp all the ages since the first hour of croation who saw the-simple and eternal rightexactly as it is, in all its majesty and glory. Ido not say this asa minister; 1 gay it on the standpoint of historical criticism. Christ was isolated because He was a man grander than all the world and because He was the only man who saw and appreciated the eternal trutl in of tradition and suverstition and spite prejudice, I think the prevailing feeling in Galilee and Samaria during the last few months of Christ's life was simple wonder; hatred was not aroused until the last month. What would you and I have given to put our ear to the window of a Hebrew house and listen to the conversation of the family? They had been out that afternoon and had seen Jesus and heard His voice, and now they have returned and are trying to make up their minds Concerning whom He ls 1 don't believe a Hebrew father or mother ever came to a conclusion; He was always ‘AN ENIGMA. Well, now, the people of Judea could only sponses a Hebrew truth, Christ appreciated God’s truth, and in the midst of that misunderstanding the cross of Cal- vary was raised, One other thing I want to speak of— concerning the calm confidence Christ had in the ulti- mate triumph of His own words. You cannot find man in history of as majestic a mien and calin bearing as Jesus; calin because He was sure of the end. What He knew He knew, and it made little difference whether you believed or not, His business was to tell the facts of the case and let it rest there, without argument. It was just as if you should try to explain the law of gravitation to your child, You would say a stone would always fall to the ground; that you knew it was 80 and that was enough, but the child would never believe it till he bad tried the experiment himself, That is why, when Jesus talked, it seems to me He was Willing to sacrifice any Immediate “spparent failure to what He was sure would be a final guccess. Others scorned and ridiculed; He looked calmly on, sure of being vindicated, ‘fhe hatred of the Pharisees was nothing to Him; the distress of His disciples and friends. had no’ more effect on Him than the ery of a child on the history ofa nation, Not that HE SCORNED THEM, but he looked beyond them. He looked at them all and said:—‘‘Friends, foes, I have a work that you know not of.” His prophetic vision saw the time when the walls of Jerusalem wonld crumble into dust, He saw the Roman army dwindling into historical oblivion. He saw the friends of hatred hovering about Him, with their cry of triumph; but they did not stir Him'an iota, He looked through it all and saw the white winged angel looking Him in the face, and 0 seeing He said, “Father, forgive them; they kuow not what they do, Souls of men, why will ye reattor Like 4 crowd of frightened sheep? Foolish hearts, why will ye wander From a love $0 true and deep t It 1s God; His love looks mi But is mightier than joes fur out Deyoud our dreams, MASONIC TEMPLE. THE ETERNAL LIFE—MR. 0. B. FROTHINGHAM DEFINES IT AS THE LIFE OF LOVE, OF SWEEI- NESS, OF PRINCIPLE, Mr. 0. B. Frothingham addressed a large audience yesterday morning at Masonic Hall, Fine weather is always favorable to piety, and the clear, beautiful day no doubt attracted many who would otherwise havo stayedat home. Mr, Frothingham’s audiences are rather different from those of most of our city preachers. ‘There is a decided foreign element—a sprinkling of Ger- mans, French, Hungarians, and a representation of the free-thinkers, woman suftragists, and others ideptified with advanced thought, which gives it quite a peculiar character. His theme yesterday was the ‘Eternal Life,” which he defined as that of higher beauty, and of noble purposes, and painted in the most idealistic colors, THR MUTABLE AND IMMUTABLE. It is a larga thome, and one which I may scarcely dis- cuss in full. My aim will only be to throw a few pebbles into the water, and to show you that there is an ocean there, ‘The Eternal Life’’—there is an infinitude of meaning in this term. The corresponding term in the Greek Testament has been rendered both into “ ever- lasting” and ‘‘eternal.’’ Everlasting means that which, to our comprehension, can never come to an end; eternal signifies that which has nothing to do with time; which is out of time; which tran- scends it, Eternal things are contrasted not with everlasting things but with things temporal—namely, our bodies, our houses, our dominions, our treasures. You cannot think of any of these worldly things with- out feeling that time changes and annihilates them, but there are things which time cannot affect—pure affec- tions, sincere purposes, profound convictions, How long does it take to conceive a noble thought? Who can tell how long it takes for a beautiful dream to take possession of the heart? These things conquer time, TIMORTALITY 48 4 CURSE. The Greeks have a beautiful story of one who, by the favor of the goddess of Dawn, was privileged to live an immortal life upon earth. All those he loved passed away before him, empires banished, civilizations disap- peared—but he lived on, haggard, wasting, and he finally implored the goddess to take away the curse of everlasting life, He had forgotten to ask for youth along with everlasting life, and without it what could it be but a curse? . THE ETERNAL GoD. What is the ‘‘ eternal God” of whom we speak? Let us go as far as thought will wander when the eternal heavens shall be rolled up asa scroll, when the stars shall have died out, when other systems of creation shall have supptanted this—and does that even give you ‘an adequate idea of the eternal God? No, it is only when you think of that trath which holds gway, gener- ation after generation, of that ineffable kindness and mercy which will blot out iniquity. is only then that you can conceive of the eternity of God. In the “Inferno”? of Dante you read descriptions of eternal punishments, and the poet’s imagination is taxed to the uttermost to devise eternal means of torture. But, after all, the agonies are all of the flesh, Open now the tragedy of “Macbeth”? and read the scene where Lady Macbeth reviews the guilt of the past. That is eternal punishment. ETERNAL JOY. Do we speak of eternal joy? According to the Mo- hammedan creed the disciples of the prophet will enjoy all the luxuries of the flesh in Paradise, will be attended by the most lovely houris, and no satiety will blight their rapture. Is there any thing everlasting about it? It is only the everlastingness of the gwine, There ts old beautiful story of a pious monk who listened in wood to the enchanting warbling of a nightingale and after his revery of song he returned to the monastery. But the fences were all broken, the edifice was decayed. A tottering figure met him and grected him as the long- forgotten Brother Beruard who had been away thirty years! The music of the nightingale had made bun oblivious of time—his pleasure was truly eternal. CHANGING MORALITY, Morals differ in every community. In one place it is wrong to drink atall, in another it ia deemed wrong not to drink a good ‘deal, (Laughter.) In Springfield, Mass., you are nota gentleman if you gamble; in Mo- naco, 'you are not a gentleman unless you patronize the faro table. Thus a man of morality may change, but a man of principle is ever the itself, that the appotite for drink like every other must be curbed. Do we begin to see the difference between the everlasting and the eternal ? IMMORTALITY OF THE BEAUTIFUL. A man who, according to his ability, sees and pro- claims the secret mystery of life, isa poet. Lowly, poor, afllicted, yet he is not cast down, sights of celes: tial beauty gladden him and instil int bis soul purest joy. Take the artist who sees beauty in every flower, in every face, The touch of a Raphael, of a Tintoretto, isnot for to-day nor for to-morrow—it lives when enerations of men have crumbied imto dust, see Beethoven at his toneless piano, ho is deaf, but he feels out with his imagination the’ beautiful harmonies that come surging to his‘soul, and as long as there is any ear for the “sweet, sad music of humanity” Beethoven will be one of the eternal nen of the world. But you will say this eternal life | have painted is only for grand poets, paint- ers, musicians, for men of genius, Nay. Is there any mah or woman who has not some time caught a glimpse of this life, be it ever so floeting; a resolution to help your kind; some sense of the dignity of life and of the sacredness of the human person? Perhaps it ma; come when some one very dear to us passes away. It is what Wordsworth tries to describe in his ‘Ode to Im- mortality.” There are instincts before which the mor- tal man trembles in surprise. A WOMAN'S CURIOUS EXPERIMENT, The eternal life is a vory real, a very earnest thing which comes to men of all creeds, to all those who keep alive the longing for something beyond. And is it not our duty to keep alive this tonging? Last summer I met a Woman, who gaid she would bring up her children “without superstition,” they should never know tho word religion, the Seriptare—the word God. But what can she substitute for these grand old symbols? May she not deprive them also of reverence. conscience and faith? ‘THR TRUE BERNAL LPR The revivalists who are svon to come will say, “Have you considered that in a few years all mortal things Shall have passed away?” And they will appeal to ydur terror of tue future destiny to convert you. beg you to remember, however, that these men will only talk of the {uture and not of the present, of the external and not the internal, Suppose these men would warn You against a panic, and suppose that on the strength of that they would advise you to get out of the way, would it be honorable? ‘ould it not be more honora- ble to advise you not to leave the sinking ship, but to hold fast to 11? Would tt not be more honorable to say to you that you must not fice, but that you must brave the dangers ‘and help others too? Was it honorable for Americans before the war to flee to England and there enjoy their possessions in peace? A much better thing to preach of sweetness, of light, of love, of dis- interested sympathy and kindness, Of one thing you may be certain—that there can be no eternal life with- ‘out these, TALMAGE’S TABERNACLE, THE NUMBER AND ARCHITECTURE OF THE GATES TO HEAVEN-—-SERMON BY REY, 7. DE WITT TALMAGE. The Tabernacle was crowded jn every part at tho morning services of yesteeday, and the occasion was enlivened by tho baptssm of thirteen children, The little ones swelled 149 chorus and lent harmonious dis- cord to the voice of the older worshippers. Rev. Mr, ‘Talmage toge for his text Revelations xxi., 21—And the twrve gates wore twelve pearls’? The subject, he caid, speaks of a great metropolis, the existence of ‘which many bave doubted. Standing on New York wharf and looking off upon the harbor and gceing me. He believes that idle epecalation Is wrong, that gambling ig an intamy in | fo merchantmen coming up the Bay, the flags of foreign nations streaming from the topgalianta, you immediately make up your mind that these Vessels come from foreign ports, But from the city og which I speak no weather-beaten merchantman has evercome. There has been @ vast immigration into that city, but no emigration from itso far as our pat- ural vision ean descry. “There is no such city,” says the undevout astronomer, Even very good people tell us that HRAVEN 18 NOT A MATRRIAL ORGANISM. ; but @ grand spiritual fact, and that the Bible deserip- tions of it are almost exclusively and in all cases to bo taken figuratively. I do not know this morning but that it is simply because we have not got telescopes power- ful enough that we cannot see into the land wuere there is no darkness at all and catch a glimpse of the burnished pinnacles, As a conquering army marching on to take a city comes at nighttall to the crest of a mountain from which, in the midst of the landscape, they can’ seo the cities they are to ‘capture before they pitch #0 now do I command this regiment of God before pitching tents for the night to take one long look at the gates of the great city. I want you to examine the architecture of these gates, There have been a great many fine gateways, but Uhrist in the upper city has swung & gate such a8 wo eye ever gazed on untouched by inspiration. You know one little precious stone on tye finger will flash under the gaslight, But, oh! the rightness when the great gate of heaven swings open, dripping with the light of eternal noonday. It strikes an intinite charm through every one that passes it. Ono step this side that gate we are paupers; one step the other side that gate and we are kings. The pilgrim of earth going through that-gate at last sces in the one huge pear! all his earthly tears in crystal, Heaven is not adull place; not a contracted place; not a stupid Pout th Count the number of those gates. Twelve gates! I admit this fo father a bi HARD ON SIIARP SECTARIAN, Here is a bigoted Presbyterian who brings his West- minster Assembly Catechism and he makes a gateway out of that, and he says to the world, “You go through there or stay out.”” And here isa bigoted member of the Reformed Dutch Church, and he makes a gate out of the Heidelberg Catechism’ and he says, “You go through there or stay out.” Here is a Methodist, and he plants two posts and he says, “Now, you crowd in between those two posts or stay oul.” Here is an Episcopalian bigot who saya, ‘‘Here is a liturgy out of which I mean to make agate; go through it or stay out,” Here is a Baptist who says, ‘here is a water gate; you go through that or you must stay out.” And so in all our churches and {in all our denominations there are men who make one gate for themselves and then demand that the whole world go through it. I abhor this contractedness in religious view. Small souled man, when did God give you THE CONTRACT TO MAKK A GATE for me and for the church? 1 will not go in at that gate, I willgoin at any one of the twelve gates I choose to goin at, Here is a man who says, “I can more easily aud more closely approach my Go through a prayer book.” I say, “My brother, then use the prayer book.” Here isa man who says, “I believe there is only one mode of baptism, and that is immer- sion.” Then I say, ‘Let me plunge you!” There are two truths which are to conquer this whole world— man, @ sinner; Christ, a Saviour, Any man who adopts those two theories in his religious belief shall have my right hand in warm grip of Christian brother- hood. One Church will best get one man to Heaven and another Church another man, In every denomi- national fence there ought to be bars that you can let down and a gate that you can swing open. I do not care which one of the gates you go through if you only go through one of tho twelve gates that Christ lifted “Why, Luther, how did you get in?” “I came in through the third gate.” “Cranmer, bow did yon get through?’ I carne through the eighth gate.” Glory be to God! One heaven, but twelve gates! It does not make any difference from what quarter of the earth a man comes up, if his heart is right the landscape opens right before him. It does not make any difference how dark faced or how pale faced men may be if they will find a gate right before them. And the mighty men of earth, the royalty of earth, will not long to go back again now that they stand in the palace of the Lord. Mr, Talmage concluded by warning his hearers that each gate was guarded by an angel, and that no soul could enter without the password ‘Jesus,"’ which was not to be had unless we repented and were forgiven our sins, FIFTY-THIRD STREET BAPTIST CHURCH. REVIVAL SERVICES BY REV. A. P, GRAVES, THE EVANGELIST, AND MR. WEEKS, VOCALIST. At the Fifty-third street Baptist church yesterday morning services were held by the Rev. A. P. Graves, evangelist, assisted by Mr. George S. Weeks, a revival singer, who expects to be engaged with Messrs, Moody and Sankey when they begin their labors in New York. The congregation was notavery large one Indeed Mr. Graves, when about to give out the first hymn, re- marked that in the daily prayer meetings which had been held at Lyric Hall during the past week the average attendance was larger than the congregation ho saw before him, Mr, Weeks was introduced by the evangelist, and, after taking his place at the melodeon, the hymn commencing oi ing light ts breaki Ths darkuoss disappears, was started, the congregation joining in quite heartily. Mr. Graves then said that for a long ttme it had been a grave matter of doubt with him whether the old- fashioned way of conducting religious services was the most effective. Usually too much devolved upon the pastor, and he proposed to make the laymen shoulder a | portion of the labor, He then called upon one of the | brethren to Jead in prayer. Tne prayer concluded, Mr. Weeks was called upon for asolo. Before commencing | to sing he made a few remarks, in which he spoke of the Christiau’s comforting assurance that “Grace is sufficient for all things, Is there no balm in Gilead? Oh, yes, it is found in being near to the precious Jesus.” There ts no doubt that the singing of Mr. Weeks, not to detract at all from the labor of the evangelist, is a most powerful auxiliary to the work being carried on, He possesses not only a remarkably sweet, but a powerful voice, and the effect of the refrain of one hymn which he repeated several times was very marked. His pro- fessional experience stands him in good stead, for he was formerly a negro minstrel, and he has the power of varying the expression of his face to suit the sentiment of the hymn, whother it be that of joy, grief, pleading or triumph. Mr. Graves then read the ilfty-first Psalm, making comments upon each verse as he went along. Mr. Weeks again sang in a really touching manner a well known hymn. Mr. Graves then related an anec- dote of a young man who had fallen away from the faith. He (Air, Graves) once asked him, “Do you know that the Saviour is socking for you?’ “No, I never looked at it in that light,” was the reply. Kare you | trying to find Jesus?” “Yes, [think 1 am.” “Well, how long do you think it will take a seeking Saviour to find a seeking sinner?’ “Brethren, the collection will now be taken up.”? The collection having been attended | to a prayer followed, aud after the hymn ‘All bail the power of Jeaus’ name’ had been sung by the congrega- tion Mr. Graves preached a short discourse. The text was taken from the fifty-first Psalm, a portion of the twelfth verse, “Restore unto me the joy of thy salya- tion.’ You will remark, said the preacher, that David in this prayer does not ask to be made a Christian. He does not usk to be given a hope, I have a hope already to have restored to me the joy of thy salvation, I will en- deavor briefly to give one ’ or two reasons why you and I and all of us professing Christ have need to offer up this same prayer, In the first place God has revealed that every child of His should live always in the joy of | Hisreligion, He does not want us to ¢ @ season of | joy and light at one time and then a corresponding ‘season of darkness and depression, Not at all He wants 08 to enjoy it 365 days in the year. It is the priv- iiege of Christians to waik in the light of the Lord, and to be with Him at all times. If all Christians would only make the most of this precious privilege what power there would be in the Word! Some years | ago a young man who bad been converted in Brooklyn fell away, and meeting him shortly after he told ine that he was walking in darkness, Then I repeated to him this passage of Scripture:—‘I am Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, to-day and to-morrow.” The trouble is not with Christ, but with your own heart. Fly to Christ at once and rest assured there will be no more hours of darkness, Again, it is the privilege of all Christians to walk with Christ, not merely in theory, | but practically and in your everyday experience. ‘Another reason why you should possess this joy is because if you profess religion and do not walk in its | Joy you necessarily dishonor Jesus. Who ever went to the cross and wen! ray without a melted heart? If ‘ou have not this Joy do got it now. You represent osus. He is not here in person as He once was. True, He has left His Holy Spirit, but the place for the Holy Spirit is in the hearts of men, Mr. Graves then said that if the churches were not warmed up in the love of Christ the young converts who were brought into the fold would be chilled and would stray away from the House of the Good Shepherd, Before closing ho referred to the manner in which the late Dr. Porte- ous met his death, He concluded by asking of the congregation the following question, and implored an answer in their own hearts now, before God and the croxé:—Do you enjoy the religion of Christ? If you do not, thea I beg of you to offer up the prayer of the text, “Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation.” Mr. Weeks the: ng, and the services were brought toa close by the benediction, HANSON PLACE M.E, CHURCH. THE REVIVAL WE NEED— DISCOURSE BY THE REV. GEORGE E. REED, The pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church, corner of Hanson place and St. Felix street, Brooklyn, yester- day morning preached an earnest and eloquent sermon upon the revival we need to-day, selecting his text from Habakkuk, iii, 2 In beginning his sermon, the preacher said that ‘Revive’? probably came from Habakkuk at a very dark hour tn bis nation’s history, and while his patriotic heart was wrang with angutah, In spite of the efforts of God's servants, bis Gountry- men were in the midst of almost universal degradation, and this prophet saw them plunging down to ruin, and the faith of God rapidly disappearing. Ho was filled | not been ‘and courage With forebodings for the future, and from his heart came the prayer that He would shed upon them the light of His countenance, and dispel the present darkness, reviving His work in the midst of tho years, and in His wrath to remember mercy. Such a prayer is to-day going up from all good men and women in the land—a prayer that God will make known His glory in these years and that there may be a great re- vival of righteousness throughout the nation. God knows we need it, We constantly read of the ill doings | of men in high places, of the manipulation of rings and | how bad men are imposing upon the community. We | need a revival of honesty and straightforward dealing throughout the length and breadth of the land. And not only do we want a revival in business relations, but we have great need of one ip the Church. For the past ten or fifteen years there has not been a thorough quickening of the spirit of God—a quickening when men felt that the ordinary claims of God were more to them than the ordinary claims of business. This quickening of religious zeal, all thinking men know, is necessary to a thorough reform in business relations, and the stability of the whole nation is dependent upon {ts Christianity. You may institute ail the reforms possible and sweep away the present corrupt state of politics, but if you ba’ want of Godliness in the land one ‘class of politicians will only be swept away Lo give place to another equally as bi The preacher desired to call attention to what a re- vival was, A revival wag not an awakening. An awakening means the touching of the hearts of uncon- verted people; a revival means the touching of tho hearts of Christian people—that in them there bas been life, but that life has declined, and by the INFLURNCES OF GOD'S HOLY SPIRIT it ts retouched—revived. There ig a constant need of revival among God's people, for WORLDLY iNPLUENCES are so mighty that we are apt to get sluggish, Itis necessary to our full religious existence. In all depart- ments of life revivals are healthy. In nature, too, there are periods when a complete quickening takes place, In winter, when the earth is covered with | snow and everything has a bleak and desolate appear- ance, the leafless trees and flowers look as though they wero dead; but by and by the spring comes, with its warm sunbeams and sparkling showers aud the fresh leaves spring from their buds and the new grass begins to peep Up from its brown bed, Thus owing to certain conditions a revival takes place in nature; and so in religion conditions are constantly at work ‘to advance God's kingdom, One of the logical results of a revival is an awake: ing of souls. In a community where there was a revival there was singing and praying, and the people seem to realize that God was in the midst of them: it seems as if the Church becomes a very garden of the Lord, filled with the fragrance of His présence, Then the Christian must not stand silently looking on at the sin and un- belief around him, but he must go to his brother and sit by his side and reason with him kindly and earnestly. If this willingness,to work does not exist then WE NEED A REVIVAL, That was one of the great secrets of power in Moody and Sankey, If the people cannot come to the great evangelists, go to them, and show them in genilene: and bumthty the happiness of a Christian life. What would be the result if all tne people of this church were to obey the apostle’s injunction to go forth and reach the gospel? Why, before next March you would be able to count your converts by thousands.” A revival will come to the Church as soon as you get yready to do this, and you need not be | afraid of any rude’ repulse, for none will come from agentleman or gentlewoman when approached. The reverend gentleman concluded by urging upon his hearers the cultivation of this spirit of Christian ten- derness ana the necessity of showing by greater inte- rest in the Church, the Sunday school and the prayer Meeting their devotion to the cause of Crist, ST. ANN’S CHURCH. GALLAUDET ON THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH, The Rev. Dr. Gallaudet gave yesterday an interest. ing résumé of the history and condition of St. Ann’s, from its beginning twenty-three years ago down to the present time, Its first location was in a small chapel in Washington square, whence it moved in 1867 to @ hal} belonging to the Historical Society, and, in 1859, to its present quarters. During all this time it has supported a mission chapel, and in various ways ministered to pilgrims and wayfarers through life, It has fullen to its lot to bear heavy pecuniary burdens, and it will e a happy day in the history of the church when they are finally extinguished, “I may be par- doned,’? Dr. Gallaudet continued, “for saying that I should like to live to see that day. It has been im- possible to keep all statistics accurately, but the con- gregation has generally comprised about 150 families, numbering 1,000 persons. With the important mis. sions connected with it three clergymen are employed, and we need some $10,000 yearly to sustain the church in its true usefulness, A plan was projected and is now in operation whereby the members of tho congregation contribute according to their means, Some pledge themselves to donate ten cents weekly toward the support of the church; others twenty, filty, $1, $2 or $3 per week, as they can afford. Envelopes are distributed to those thus pledging themselves for REV. DR. the amounts named upon them enclosed. None but the clergymen know the sums given by each member, and the great advantage gained is the education to systematic giving. Some of the envelopes returned contain more than the amounts pledged, and these are jooked upon as thank offerings from grateful hearts. The donations fall off during the summer, and it is to be regretted that the autumn increase is not sufficiently great to cover the deficiency alluded to as existing dur- ing the heated term. Tho same diminution of gilts ex- {sts on unpleasant Sundays, and on the fair ones suc- ceeding the loss is not quite made up. There is a mort- gage amounting to $15,000 upon the church property, and there is besides a debt of $4,000, tHe interest on these sums having to be provided for. Let those who have done all that they could thank God for the opportunity allowed them, and let those who have not given what they should repent, The priests and the people should know each other better than they do, One method is for the tors to visit the or tas in their homes, and those who have us visited should mention this fact, The people can also visit the pastors if they are in trou orit they wish for clergymen to visit the sick. There are six services here nearly every Sunday and service every day throughout the week. These latter services are fot so well attended as they should be. How many persons are there in this great city who have no duties | to perlorm? Such persons should begin or end their duily walk at the church on week days und participate in the services conducted there. We would also ask assistance for our home for aged and infirm deaf mutes at No. 220 East Thirteenth street, and for encourage- ment and aid to our parish brotherhood and sisterhood. The latter have organized a visiting Guild and have done much good among the poor, Much money is needed to continue our work, but I regard the time for discoar- agement as having passed. Donations will accrue and legacies will be given which will greatly lighten our load, and, above all, we should believe in the spirit of prayer aud a response from on high,” ST, STEPHEN'S CHURCH. SERMON BY THE REV. FATHER COSTIGAN—THE NECESSITY AND IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER. A large congregation was present yesterday morning | at the high massin St. Stephen’s The music selected was Rossi’s masa in D minor. The ‘Laudamus Te” of the “Gloria,” a soprano solo, was given with much skill by Mme. Brignoli, who was in excellent voice, Bellini’s “Veni Creator” was also sung in fine style by that lady. The high mass was celebrated by the Rev. Dr. Curran. At the conclusign of the first Gospel the Rey. Father Costigan occupied the pulptt and preached ‘a very instructive sermon on prayer, He founded his discourse on the Gospel of the day—John, iv., 46, 53, and said:— The petition of the ruler in favor of his dying son, “Come down before my child dics,” exemplifies and illustrates the necessity as well as the manner of prayers for our daily wants, In consoquence of the fall ot Adam we can do nothing of ourselves for ourselves. Since the day that Adam sinned to the present hour our con- dition has been one of extreme misery, and life has been a fierce contest between man and the enemy of man’s salvation. In the midst of this warfare, however, we | hear a voice from on high, which bids us have hope | “Amen, amen, I say to you if you ask the Father anything in my name he will give it you, Ask, therefore, that your joy may be full.” Prayer is one of the greatest mearss of man’s salvation, Its practice is the purchase money of every blessing; | its neglect THE SEAL OF OUR DAMNATION, Prayer is the very essence of religion, for our first duty is to do homage to the God who made us, and to thia end the first petition of Christ’s own prayer ts, “Hallowed be thy name.”? We are all subjects of an omnipotent God, and prayer is the fit acknowledgment of that subjection, Moreover, beset as we are on every side by temptations and dangers which we cannot, of ourselves, overcome, we must, as we are told, fly for succor to “the giver of every best and perfect gift.’? “Watoh and pray,” says Christ, “that-you enter not into temptation, ’ ‘Thus, while prayer fs of ley ‘*o all classes and all conditions o! people, God has, 4ieely ordained that no soul on which the light of rgkson has dawned ts in- capable of its practice. It igo simple language of the heart, the impulsive ou'pouring of the soul to its Creator. We cannot obyeet that it 1s beyond our reach, for God has declared tay {tis ‘in our mouth and in ‘our heart we may ¢g it,” Prayer, however, to be ac- ceptable to God #44 peneficial to us, must have certain qualifications: hich give it an almost omnipotent power, St. augustine says:—‘‘Prayer is T® KEY OF THE KINGDOM HEAVEN, Tt unlo‘yes the treasures of God’s graces and mercies.’? Thes 4 conditions are that our prayer be bumbie as the P apliean’s, with faith as the ruler’s in this day’s Gospel, With confidence and perseverance as that of the woman, who sought, and obtained the cure of ber daughter. Recognizing the absolute necessity and excellence of prayer, the Church would to-day earnestly extort her these sums, and the enveiopes are then returned with | before it perish.” The prayer ths spoken will bring down biessings upon you and upon your household, ST. JAMES’ M. E. CHURCH, PERSONAL INTIMACY WITH JESUS CHRIST— SERMION BY REV. DR. CYRUS D. Foss, Since the appointment.of Rev. Dr. Cyrus D. Foss as. President of Wesleyan University he has continued to preach at St, James’ Methodist Episcopal church, corner of Madison avenue and 126th street, every first and third Sunday of the month, an arrangement which willbe continued until the installation of a successor. At the services yesterday morning there was a large attend- ance, and his sermon was characterized by vigor of thought and was listened to with great attention, His text was Philippians, iij,, 8—And I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord” He began his discourse with a brief but graphic sketch of St Paul, The human mind was so constituted that it wanted some certain foundation upon which to build its faith, The great questions of sin, life and salvation, as taught us inthe Word of God, and principally in the New Testament, find here that solid rock which can sustain us, and all is sea beside, The nature of miracles and prophecy is easily understood. Man has not foreseen the morrow and yet he has foresecen a thousand years away, and uprolied the scroll of events. But it was through God this was done, Spiritual insight attests to nian what he perceives, AS men come to that great crisis in every human life, tho bridge of death, they march gown thousands by thousands and as they ap- proach THE DREAD PERHAPS there are those who have leaned all thelr hopes upon the Bible, who believe that the bridge hidden from view at the further end has au abutment in that unseen vista resting on solid rock. Such do not stumble, but walk steadily on, and their songs of praises to God reach the ears of us this side, Thomas, tbe great doubter, said Jesus is risen from the d id he knew it tobe a fact. Christian faith enables one to declare Jesus Christ the Lord areal living presence. The greatness of this truth, the majesty of this knowledge, was tne proof of its existence. No revelation of science 18 80 startling; no idea of metaphysics so mysterious; no logical reasoning so conclusive. It is great to be am astronomer and study the mysteries of the universe, Is it not rather greater to know God, from the hollow of whose hand these worlds sprung? No human knowledge can measure THR CAPACITY OF THR SOUT. How long would the chemist with his croscope have to examine the atoms making up the world’s fabric; how long would the astronomer have to peer out into the world of intizitude before he could find whtat would wash away the stains of sin? The Christian knows how the stain of sin is washed away, In con- clusion the preacher showed that this knowledge was universal to all true Christians, and urged on his hearers to endeavor to become on terms of greater persoual intimacy with Christ, RUSSO-GREEK CHAPEL. SERMON BY REV. NICHOLAS BJERRING. Av the usual hour there was service yesterday at the Russo-Greek chapel. The liturgy of St. Chrysostom was sung in the Sclavonic language, and after the reud- Ing of the Gospel of the day the Rey, Nicholas Bjerring made the following announcement:. Next Sunday I intend, with the grace of God, to preach on the doctrines of the Greek Chufch, and you and your friends are cordially invited to attend the service, not that we seek to make proselytes, but only, to use the words of the Procurator General of the Holy Synod of Russia, in his report to His Imperial Majesty the Emperor Alexander, to give direction to the solu- tion of the question raised by the Old Catholics of a general union of all churches, and it isto that end that I wish to contribute something to a better understanding of the Greek Church, as much more as the Inst confer- ence in Bonn between members of the Greek, the Anglican and Old Catholic Churches gives good ‘hope thut such a union may be realized, Then followed THE SERMON IN TIE ENGLISH LANGUAGE before avery large assembly upon the sub ye, therefore, and teuch all nations, teaching them to Observe ull things whatsoever I have commanded you.” Jesus came into the world to save that which was lost. After His work of salvation was finished He ro- turned to Him who had sent Him. As He was sent by the Father, so He appointed the Church to be the guido of men, and to that end transmitted to her the same commission. The Church was to lead all to the foot of the cross and lilt them up to His merciful heart, The history of the mission of the Church is the history of the visible providence of God over men, This holy Church, founded by oar Divine Saviour, has sent me among you to instruct you in the SCIENCE OF GoD. WhoamI? Whence dol come? What is my des- tiny? These are questions of importance to every man, As long as philosophy treads in the footsteps of Gbristianity its results are salutary, but when it turna away it falls into speculation. The pagan phi- losophers, ag well as many of our own, have failen into most absurd errors, ‘The divine revelation is the only guide; therefore the Son of God came down to us to reveal our future. The immortality of the soul ig oiten denied, but the existence of man is not coniined to the limuits of this short life, Your soul has nothing to fear trom the corruption of the grave. For what end was given man this burning love, this great intel- ligence, when beyond the tomb there is nothing but eternal death? Be therefore faithful to God and holy Church; then your*whole life will be a living sermon of the Gospel. im REFORMED EPISCOPALIANS. OPENING OF A NEW PLACE OF WORSHIP, Bishop Cummins conducted the services at the ine auguration of a Reformed Episcopal Church yesterday afternoon, in the hall over the Kings County Bank, corner of Broadway and Fourth street, Brooklyn, E. D, Dra. Porter, Hyatt, Smith, Warren, Eggleston and other local divines were present, Bishop Cummins, in the course of the dedicatory sermon, said:—Per- haps the highest quality of religion is simplicity, and of that attribute in perfection thero has never been but one instance. St, Paul speaks of the simplicity of the Church, and was afraid that that of Corinth, founded by himself, would become corrupt, If the example of the Pagans, by whom it was surrounded, would corrupt it in the lifetime of its originator, how much moro fear was there now. R ligious simplicity may be classed into sim- plicity of teaching, simplicity of living and simplicity of worship. Many think that theology and simplictty are incompatible, and it is not to be de- med that forms and dogmatic doctrines are of use, God help the ministers of Christ to preach the doctrines of dogma; free thinking leads to free living, but itis one thing to read the subtleties of theologians and another to hear the words as they fell from the lips of Jesus, Philosophers can slake their thirst at the stream and little children can drink of it. A certain king once asked a wise man what God was, and after repeated delays for reflection the wise man confessed to the king that the more he had pondered upon the sub- ject the more he had become aghast at its awful signifi- cance, and that he could not answer the question pro- pounded. And yet it is simple—God is love. There is ho obscurity in’ the phrase, “Believe in Jesus Christ and ye shall be saved.’ An old Scotch woman once asked Dr. Chalmers what she should do to be saved, and after repeated attempts to make her under- stand’ tus rounded periods, be told her in the familiar peasant dialect to lean upon the Lord. “Is thut all f’? returned the surprised hearer, ‘why, I have been doing that all my life.’ It 1s thus often of benefit to give up long-winded sermons filled with hard words that no one anderstands. Place the casuistries of some of the theologians side by side with the ten short Tules, and observe how the latter contain all that is of moment in the former; and again observe how the decalogue may be summed up in the simple suying, that “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy strength.’ simplicity is in harmony with all the teachings of the Gospel CHURCH DEDICATION. IMPRESSIVE CEREMONY AT MELROSE. ‘The ceremony of dedicating the new Church of the Immaculate Conception, at Melrose, took place yester- day morning. The old edifice, situated at 150th street, near Third avenue, was much too small for the wants | of the congregazion. The new grading line, which necessitates the cutting down of 151st street some twenty-five fuet below its former level, makes the posi- tion of the old wooden church and the pasvor’s brick bouse very dangerous, The former will be torn down and the latter removed, The pastor, the Rey. Father Stu has erected a commodious school house on 11st street, the second floor of which he has trans- formed into @ very beautiful little church, blessed yesterday by Bishop Bekker, of Wilmington, Del. Tho church is known in Meirose as the German church, most of its congregation being of that nationality. ‘Khe music on the occasion was very fine, many volunteer singere having offered thei ‘on the cecasion. The mass sung is known as Weber's mass in G. At tho offertory an exquisite piece of music, Verdi's ‘0 Salu- taris,”’ ‘was sung with great taste by Miss Morrison- Fises, Pio “Benedictus’’ was also finely executed by a quarte The blessing of the church began at about a quarter of eleven, Bishop Bekker singing the main portion of the Litany of the Saints, while the rest of the proces- sion gave the responses as they entered the church. Some psalms were then read, after which the Bishop formally blessed the Kling it with holy ‘water in ever and ‘the prayers prescribed Tithe rites of the Ghureh, ‘This was followed by a solemn Bigh mass, the Bishop being celebrant with Father Goeckeln, President of Jesuits’ College at Fordbam, as deacon of honor. Father Soeg, of Tremont, acted as deacon, and Father wot of New Orleans, as subdeacon. The pastor, i Stumpe, took the part of master of coremonten, BS sides those already mentioned there were present , . General Quinn, "Brother Telliow, President of tho Catholic Protedtory; Rey. Father O'Mahoney, of the Dominican church and Dr, MeGlynn. At the close of the services solemn pontifical benediction was given by ehfidren vo imitate the earnest and ey ork prayer of the ruler, to be bumble as he was full of faith and confidence, and to raise our voices louder and louder, calling: “Lord, Lord, come down and beal my sinful soul Bishop Bekker. ‘Gospel had been read Dr, MeGlynn as~ ensedtoey aipi and king his text from St, John, chap. vi—tl am the bread of life”? delivered aa cigauens discourse vee}