ESTABLISHED IN 1855.
Sleigh christian advocate.
0f2sn of the North Carolina Conference.
ishep Weekly at Raleigh, N. C.
co:h1.--'-i? matter in the post-office at Raleigh.
IVEY, D. D., . . . Editor.
WATSON, Business Manager.
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RALEIGH CHRISTIAN ADVOCATE.
EDITORIAL
THE FMLURE AND SUCCESS OF THE
PEACE CONFERENCE.
The Peace Conference did not abolish
11 -1 f
U CI
as many millennial areamers ex-
pectec
J. l:
aciournment leit the guns
roaring
id the flags flying as of old.
IV
t destroy the feeling of envv and
ir (
distrust among the nations. It failed to
take anv decisive steps relative to the
practical questions which affect not only
our country but other countries.
It would be going too far, however, to
sav that the Peace Conference has not
been successful in some points. It has
placed itself on record as believing that
armies and armaments should be de
creased; that the question of guns on
land and sea should be seriously studied ;
and that the rights and duties of neutrals
should receive due consideration. The
greatest work of the Conference, however,
was in the way of preparing for that for
which certain dreamers, led by Edward
Everett Hale, labored so earnestly several
years ago a permanent International
Court. The agreements reached by the
Conference will be subject to ratification
by a convention of each government.
Within three months after ratification,
each Power is to name four persons to
act as arbitrators. The arbitrators will
hold off.ee for a term of six years. The
Court of Arbitrators will be held at the
Hague. Much will be clone if this Inter
national Court be established.
IN THE FULL TRIUMPH
PEL FAITH."
OF THE G0S-
St. Paul very appropriately referred to
the Christian life as a warfare. There is
a series of conflicts from the spiritual
cradle to the grave of the body. The
true Christian life is a succession of tri
umphs. The triumph in the hour of
death is the final one. It is so easy and de
cisive to the soul that has been clothed
with the whole armour of God. Satan
as no power. The waters of death have
no chill. Faith is strong. Eternal hope
is bright. The spirit is exultant. The
archway of Heaven bends down to earth,
and Jesus seems so near and precious.
"Blessed are the dead that die in the
Lord. ' How true andj comforting are
these words!
A few days ago there died in the west
ern Part of the State a good man. He
had given his life to Christ. His was a
familiar name ail over our State. He was
a friend to the friendless, and a loyal
so1d:er of Jesus Christ. He knew that
the end
was approaching. He repeated
Rev. i-
. mUe prayer that he had learned in
boyhood: "Now I lay me down to
SieeP, ' etc., and his soul passed into the
Presence of the Father. His was a grand
Vlctory- It could not be otherwise. The
me of Henry Clay Wall is added to
illustrious roll of Christ's followers
have died in the " full triumphs of
a &osp:i faith."
ORGAN OF THE NORTH
SAVED FROM WHAT?
The word "saved " is a common one in
your vocabulary. You claim that you be
long to the class thus characterized. You
roll the word as a sweet morsel under
your tongue. But did you ever stop to
ask seriously and prayerfully the question,
Saved from what? Matthew uses these
words, "And she shall bring forth a son,
and thou shall call his name Jesus: for
he shall save his people from their sins."
It is good for us to remember that if we
have a good title to salvation, we are
r . . ,
.rlul us aMuiiaiiy io write aown
a list of sins that we have been "saved"
from. We would be apt to find that there
are some sins from which "we have not
been saved. Such a revelation would
prove that we cannot "read our titles
clear," and should bring us to our knees
before the mercy seat.
LIFE IN THE PAST AND FUTURE.
A Chinaman bought a tract of land in
the New7 Jersey swamps. When he went
to inspect the land, he was greatly disap
pointed. It was completely covered with
water. The speculators tried to comfort
him by telling him that there was a great
future in the land, that right here the
bargain lay. The disconsolate Celestial
only shook his head and said, "Too
muchee future." This anecdote is told
by Dr. David Gregg in one of his books
to illustrate the fact that we may have
too little of the present and too much of
the future, in our lives.
We may have too little of the present
in our lives. But as long as we are true
I to the Present, it will be impossible for us !
to have too much of the future. The was grave danger that all the ordinances
man of the true type has in his life not of religion would-t&! into public con
only much of the future, but much of j tempt, and perhaps cease to be adminis-
, , . ' tered m decent and orderly fashion. The
tne past.
The lodge was waiting for the "degree
team" to get itself in readiness for the
initiation of the twelve candidates that !
were in waiting; a distinguished member
of the order took advantage of the pause
to exhort his brethren that it was more
important to the welfare .of the order to
care for and retain those already in, than
it was to add new7 members, and this, he
said, could be done by practicing the
principle and precepts of the order. His
words wTere wise and w7ell chosen ; and
the same thing is true of the church.
Methodism may not have paid too much
attention to bringing in new members,
but she has done too little in caring for
them after they are in. "Feed my lambs"
is a command which the preacher has no
ri-ht to ignore, even in his anxiety to
count new converts.
"He is very profound," was the com
ment of a good sister on the sermons of
her pastor in which she had been unable
to discover very much intellectual or
spiritual food.
We have heard that same comment a
number of times, by some charitably dis
posed people who were unable to discover
the difference between profundity of
thought and obscurity of language. It is
the old story of the rabbit, over and over,
"You can't see him because he is not
there."
Some men are scrupulously honest in
all their dealings with their fellow men,
who are woefully and deplorably dishon
est when it comes to paying their obli
gations to Almighty God. Suppose you
examine your own case honestly.
Bishop Candler exhorts the brethren
not to place the Twentieth Century Fund
question before that of revivals. This is
a wise exhortation. We cannot raise the
funds until the spiritual life be stimulated
and developed. Good collections always
follow in the wake of true revivals of religion.
CAROLINA CONFERENCE, M.
RALEIGH, N. C, AUGUST 16, 1899.
SPURIOUS SPIRITUALITY.
In all that we have had to say concern
ing the Twentieth 'Century Fund it has
been our constant care to insist that the
appeal for contributions should not be
put forward in any such way as to dis
connect it from the general religious life
of the church. Whatever sums are given
at this time or at any time, either for
strengthening our educational institu
tions or for any other purpose, should be
given, not from secular motives, but as
an expression of devout gratitude to Al
mighty God. In reviewing the hundred
years that are now running so rapidly to
a close, it is easy for the "people called
Methodists ' to find ten thousand causes
for thanksgivh iff, and for such thanks-iv
ing as will find its appropriate display in
liberal material offerings.
What is wanted now is not mere emo
tional fervor, wasting itself in pious ejacu
lations, but full and unreserved conse
cration, issuing in a wide and genuine
manifestation of practical benevolence.
That a deeper spirituality is the supreme
need of the church is so true that nobody
will be found to deny it or call it in ques
tion ; but it is also true that the kind of
spirituality which puts on a wry face and
shuts up its pocketbeok at the mention of
money is, if not wholly spurious, at least
of an inferior quality.
To those ministers and laymen among
us who insist that we are virtually pro
faning a great epoch by soliciting large
and generous gifts for our
struggling
schools and colleges, and who maintain
that we ought to lose sight of everything
at the present time except a technical
revival of religion, we have only to
say there is a specific warrant in the
Holy Scriptures for the policy that has
been adopted. The last of the Old Testa
ment prophets lived in a disordered and
irreverent age. The chosen people, for
getful of their solemn obligations, were
slow to restore the temple, and still
slower tn make ademiafe Tvrovisinn for
SUstaininff its appointed services. There
priests wno, oy aivme arrangement were
a charge upon the whole nation, were de
nied their portion of the fruits of the field
and the flock, and were left to shift for
themselves as well as tney coiud. It was
a most lamentable state oi anairs.
What did Malachi say to his fellow
countrymen in this grave emergency ?
"Will a man rob God? Yet ye have
robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have
we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
Ye are cursed with a curse ; for ye have
robbed me, even this whole nation.
Bring ye all the tithes into the store
house that they may be meat in mine
house, and prove me now herewith, saith
the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you
the windows of heaven, and pour you
out a blessing, that there shall not be
room enough to receive it." That the
blessing thus promised was primarily
great temporal prosperity, is readily ad
mitted ; but surely it was not intended to
stop there. God's answer to the free and
hearty offerings of his people is some
thing more than full vineyards and wav
ing fields of grain. He pours out the
copious streams of His grace upon the
minds and hearts of those who recognize
His property, rights in all their posses
sions. We are moving on the right track.
Let us preach the old truths as we have
never done before, omitting nothing from
preventing grace to perfect love. . The
opportunity that has come to us is one of
signal sublimity, and cannot be attent
ively considered without feelings of the
most exultant character. Why should,
not a boundless hopefulness take posses
sion of our hearts ? He who has led us
thus far will not desert us hereafter. The
future also is his and ours, if we show
ourselves worthy of it. It cannot be
amiss in us to put a commanding empha
sis upon the doctrine of stewardship, re
calling ourselves and our flock to the
fresh and fuller recognition of the fact
that all our belongings are held in trust
to be used for wise and good ends. Every
pulpit in the denomination, while not for
getting nor ignoring other important
themes, should expound this one with a
definiteness that cannot be ignored, and
an energy that cannot be disregarded.
Nashville Advocate.
The good qualities of a man are not
sufficient to offset the bad, nor make
atonement for the evil consequences of
his doings, especially when the evil affects
society, and undermines the common faith.
E. CHURCH, SOUTH.
DOCTRINAL PREACHING.
The preaching of the doctrines of
Methodism was a habit with the fathers
of the Church. They studied the Bible
and the standards to this one great end,
and no congregation where they minis
tered was left in doubt as to what Meth
odists believed and taught. They struck
right at the root of the matter, and
planted those great principles which are
the staple of all Church life and enter
prise. Repentance, justification, regen
eration, the witness of the Spirit, adop
tion, sanctification, were the themes upon
which they dwelt from the beginning to
the close of the year. These truths w7ere
burned into the consciousness of the peo
ple until they repented and believed, and
w7ere powerfully converted. W7onderful
meetings followed in the wake of those
preachers. They indoctrinated the peo
ple. They taught them of the joys of
heaven, of the certainty of the judgment,
of the terrors of hell, as well as of the
love and mercy of God. Thev cried
aloud and spared not, and they looked
for immediate results. They were not
college-bred men as a rule, but were men
consciously acquainted with God. They
believed with all their hearts the letter
of the scriptures, and they felt, "YvToe is
me if I preach not the gospel." Men
heard them, and were often stricken
dow7n as though they were dead under
the truth. Then, too, these old worthies
preached the distinct doctrines of Meth
odism, such as the universality of the
atonement, the possibility of apostasy,
the importance of infant baptism, and
the validity of baptism administered to
adults by sprinkling, pouring, or affusion.
In the presentation of these questions
they did not mince matters, but declared
the whole counsel of God as they under
stood it. Under such preaching people
knew7 why they were Methodists, for they
were given a reason for the hope that
was within them. They were trained in
the doctrines of Methodism.
In these latter days we have .gone to
the other extreme. For the most part we
have ceased to preach the distinctive
doctrines of .the Church, and we dwell
more largely upon the practical themes
of the gospel. We are aware of the fact J
that the same necessity for constantly
dwelling upon these doctrines does not
exist to-day as it did then. The Church
no longer has to fight for its existence as
a legitimate branch of evangelical Chris
tianity. We are in possession of the
field, and no one disputes our right.
However, this does not do away entirely
with the necessity for the preaching of
our doctrines. They are the great foun
dation and frame-work of our church life.
Our people need to have them expounded
to them. The fact is, our young people
are growing up in ignorance of the real
doctrinal status of Methodism. It is very
rare in the centers of population that you
hear a sermon preached upon these great
themes. We simply take these things
for granted, and the result is, our people
are not indoctrinated. We are Metho
dists because our parents or our associates
are Methodists, and not because we are
instructed in the fundamental principles
of Methodism. We need a revival right
here, as sure as you live. And if the
7 mf
spiritual dearth obtains, which many of
the students of Church statistics hold,
the cause of it may in some measure be
traced to a dearth of doctrinal preaching.
We have a great deal of namby-pamby
preaching nowadays. We are neglecting
the substratum of Bible truth in our pul
pits. We need to swing just a little back
toward the habit of the fathers. Too
much vapid pulpit performance will
starve out the spiritual life of the people.
They must be fed upon the doctrines of
the Scriptures, or they will perish. Let
us think upon these things. Texas Ad
vocate. THE CONSECRATION OF THE WILL.
Free will is a fact, an awful fact. The
fact may be denied, but the fact is there.
The mysteries that are connected with
this doctrine obscure, but do not obliter
ate, the truth. God has endowed man
with a wonderful power of choice. It is
said to man : "Choose this or that." The
whole dignity of human nature is invol
ved in that "or.." If all that could be
said was, "Choose this and that," human
ity would be dwarfed to the dimension
of a mechanism rather than a manhood,
it would be made up of automata, not
living souls. Nezc York Observer.
New Series. Vol l, No. 26.
THE LENGTH OF SERMONS.
The length' of sermons has varied
greatly. Those recorded in the Bible are
all very short, but they are probably given
in condensed form. The sermons of the
church fathers rarely occupied more than
ten minutes in delivery. Long sermons
came with the Reformation and flourished
especially among the oldest English di
vines. In the works of John Howe are
sermons containing upwards of 18,000
words that must have consumed several
hours in delivery. Bishop Alcock
preached at Cambridge ' a good and pleas
ant sermon', which was two and a half
hours long, and Isaac Barrow's Spital ser
mon was three and a half hours long. In
modern days Edward Irving preached a
sermon three hours and a half in length
for the London Missionary Society. A
generation ago American sermons aver
aged about an hour in length. In coun
try churches it was common to have two
services in succession with an intermis
sion. At the morning service 'the long;
sermon' was an hour and a half in length,
and in the afternoon the 'short sermon'
was an hour long. The constant ten
dency in recent times has been towards
the shortening of the sermon. Sermons
an hour long are still occasionally heard,
but they are occasional, and are generally
regarded as excessive 111 length. For a
number of years half an hour has been
considered the proper length for a ser
mon, and the present tendency seems to
be towards shortening it still more. Some
of our ablest preachers rarely exceed
twenty-five minutes in the delivery of
their sermons.
The sermon has grown shorter partly
because other, portions of the service have
growTn longer. The devotional part of
the service has been extended in many
churches by the introduction of respon
sive readings, and more time is also given
to music. The prayers are briefer, but
praise is more prominent in the service
than formerly. The chief reason, how
ever, for the shortening of the sermon is
the changed condition of preaching in
our day. In former days the pulpit was
largely a means of instruction. The
Scriptures were explained in long exposi
tory discourses. Books and papers w?ere
few7, schools were scarce, and the minister
being a man of education, was the chief
teacher of the community. But the gen
eral diffusion of intelligence and the
abundance of books and papers have
brought the pulpit and pew more nearly
to a level and have largely relieved the
pulpit from the work of giving instruc
tion. The chief office of the pulpit now
is persuasion. The preacher " assumes
general knowledge of the subject on the
part of his hearers, and it is his business
to focus this "knowledge and shoot it in a
burning beam into their hearts and upon
their wills. This work must be done
rapidly and decisively, or emotion will
evaporate and the effect will be lost. The
short sermon is also of a piece with the
short speech, the short editorial, and the
condensed book. The age is practical
and swift, and is impatient of tediousness
and delay. If a man has anything to say,
he must come to the point quick and
say it.
No rigid rule can be imposed on the
length of the sermon. Some subjects
and occasions call for ampler time and
treatment. But the short sermon is the
better rule, and the efficiency of a sermon
is generally inversely proportional to its.
length. A long sermon begins to weary
and worry the congregation, and its last
end is worse than at its first. Many a
good sermon is killed by its last fifteen
or twenty minutes. The long sermon
can be shortened by striking out tedious"
introductions, detailed explanations, and
superfluous sentences and words. Com
pression produces heat. The sun, when
expanded to its original limits, was colder
than an iceberg ; compression has made
it hot. This is wThat the sermon needs.
Condense it out of its nebulous state into
short, decisive sentences, and it will be
gin to burn. Let the sermon be cleared
of padding and its thoughts be crowded
together, let it move straight to its point
and do its wrork quickly, and it w7ill be
more effective in attracting and moving
men. Presbyterian Banner.
Rev. Frederick O. McCarthy, the new
Field Secretary of the International
Peace Union, is a native of Wisconsin,
where he was born thirty-five years ago.
He is a graduate of Ohio College and
the Andover Theological Seminary.