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CHURCH DEBTS 
 
 ORIGIN, 1 1 EVILS, AND CURE 
 
 WILLIAM RAMSEY. 
 
 Q.UI JTIHIL DEBET, LICTORES JfOX TIMET. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 ROBERT E. PETERSON, 
 
 NORTH WEST CORNER OF FIFTH AND ARCH STREETS. 
 1851. 
 
Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1851, by 
 
 William Ramsey, 
 
 in the Office of the Clerk of the District Court, for the Eastern 
 
 District of Pennsylvania. 
 
 WM. F. GEDDES, PRINTER, 112 CHESTNUT 8T. 
 
DEDICATION. 
 
 To all who truly reprobate, 
 As well as those who do not hate, 
 With perfect hatred, and sincere, 
 The Debt on Churches; but adhere 
 To customs based on love of gold, 
 With all their evils manifold, 
 I kindly dedicate this work, 
 Alike to Christian, Jew, and Turk. 
 
 W. R. 
 
 Philadelphia, March 22, 1851, 
 
TO THE READER. 
 
 These letters were written under a feeling sense of 
 the enormous curse of Church Debts. They were all 
 published in the " Christian Observer," of this city, 
 except a few of the last pages, which were withheld, 
 because some of our debt-oppressed Christians felt 
 that they had as much light on the subject as their 
 consciences could then bear. That the discussion of 
 this subject has done incalculable good, there can be 
 no doubt. Many have been " provoked to love and to 
 good works" in paying off their Church Debts, who 
 will be slow to thank the Author for the assistance he 
 has rendered them in their work. But he has his re- 
 ward in the knowledge of the fact, that many of his 
 brethren in the ministry have been delivered, through 
 his instrumentality, from the bondage under which 
 they were made to groan by a money-loving church. 
 They are now republished at the earnest request of 
 many, who hope that the smooth stone, which has 
 slain some of these haughty Philistines, which have 
 defied Israel, may not leave one of the race to curse 
 the Church of God. That they may accomplish this 
 blessed work, is the sincere prayeirof 
 
 The Author. 
 
CHURCH DEBTS, 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 Mr. Editor, — In conversing with a friend, a few 
 days ago, the subject of "church debts" was intro- 
 duced. In the course of the conversation, I expressed 
 the sentiment, that "a standing debt upon a church was 
 a standing curse upon it," — that it was not only a curse 
 resting upon that church and congregation, but that it 
 had a most blighting influence upon those who had no 
 connection with the Church of Christ. He replied 
 that he did not think so; but that, on the contrary, it 
 was in many cases a blessing. One of the benefits 
 arising from church debts was then mentioned, viz: 
 that it acted as a bond of union. We did not stop to 
 discuss the sentiment, but separated; each one in the 
 undisturbed enjoyment of his own opinion. 
 
 As this gentleman is one of the most liberal hearted 
 Christians in this city, and is behind no others in deeds 
 of benevolence, so far as God may enable him to act, 
 I have been led to inquire, whether the remark was 
 not made to elicit my views on the subject, rather than 
 to express his own decided judgment in the case. The 
 more I have thought on the subject, however, the more 
 firm I am in the belief of the sentiment, that a standing 
 debt upon a church of the Lord Jesus Christ, is a 
 standing curse. The thing is displeasing to God — in- 
 jurious to the souls of Christians — ruinous to the souls 
 of men — one of the greatest hindrances to the 
 spread of the gospel and the salvation of men — 
 and the grand reason why the flock of Christ is kept 
 in perfect infancy, and hindered from arriving at the 
 fulness of the stature of men in Christ Jesus. This 
 perpetual infancy of the Church in strength, zeal, and 
 power, is not only her disgrace^ but her sin. 
 
6 Church Debts. 
 
 I am willing to grant that the views which I hold on 
 this subject are one-sided. Nor can I appreciate the 
 strength of the arguments that may be adduced in sup- 
 port of the blessings of church debts. The arguments 
 may be powerful in the eyes of those who present them; 
 but, to me, they are like Samson under the shears of 
 Delilah. So long as I have the Bible to -sustain me, I 
 am content to be ''onesided" in my views, and am 
 perfectly willing to bear any reproach, or encounter 
 any opposition that may be waked up against an hon- 
 est effort to cast out this demon from the church of the 
 living God. And with your aid, I purpose to agitate 
 this subject, until it shall be as disgraceful in the eyes of 
 the church, as it now is in the eyes of the icorld ; and 
 until this foul blot shall be wiped out forever from the 
 Church of Christ. 
 
 If "church debts" are church blessings, may I not 
 ask for some of your gifted scribes to write them down 
 so plain that all may read, and let the public be en- 
 lightened on the subject. But that church debts are 
 church curses, I trust will appear to all, before we con- 
 clude. Take them in what shape you please, either in 
 Alopathic or Homoeopathic doses, the curse is there still, 
 and no power on earth can alter it. It is like the car- 
 nal mind ; it is enmity against God. It never can har- 
 monize with the will of God. It must be destroyed. 
 These church debts are some of those "little foxes that 
 spoil the vines," and although it may be difficult to 
 catch them, still, we hope, in due time, to save "our 
 vines, which have tender grapes," from their future an- 
 noyance. 
 
 In my next letter I will endeavor to point out the 
 ignoble parentage of church debts. In the meantime, it 
 would be well for those who have a fellow feeling on 
 this subject with the writer, to "read, study, and in- 
 wardly digest" that portion of God's word, which is 
 found in the prophecy of Malachi, 3: 8—12. 
 
 Yours, sincerely, in the war against Church Debts. 
 
 William Ramsey. 
 June 2, 1845. 
 
Not of Scriptural Origin. 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 Mr. Editor, — I rejoice that you have given my first 
 letter a place in your valuable paper, and that you 
 have thus introduced this important subject of Church 
 Debts to the notice of your readers. I am, therefore, 
 encouraged to proceed. If church debts are church 
 blessings, then let us pray that they may be continued; 
 but, if they are church curses, the sooner we can get 
 clear of them the better. My object is good, my mo- 
 tives are good ; and I trust that all my remarks will 
 be in the spirit of kindness. — But I desire that they 
 should cut so deep, as to cut out this plague-spot from 
 the Church of Christ forever. 
 
 I will now turn your attention to the parentage of 
 church debts, and we shall see how much there is in 
 the system to commend it to the patronage of the 
 churches. After a most careful search, I am constrain- 
 ed to say, that the plan of erecting churches pro- 
 fessedly for the worship of God, and not paying for 
 them, is 
 
 1. Not of Scriptural Origin. 
 
 The first account which we have in the Scriptures 
 of any building being erected for the worship of God, 
 is a description of the tabernacle. The history of 
 this transaction is found in Exodus, chaps, xxxv. — xl. 
 It is briefly this : When Moses was on the Mount, he 
 received from the Lord a command to build the taber- 
 nacle, which was to be carried with Israel in their 
 journey through the wilderness. On his descending, 
 he "gave to Israel the command of the Lord," which 
 w r as in these words : "This is the thing which the 
 Lord commanded, saying, take ye from among you 
 an offering unto the Lord; whosoever is of willing 
 heart, let him bring it, an offering of the Lord ; gold, 
 and silver, and brass." In compliance with this com- 
 mand, we learn that the people came, every one whose 
 
8 Church Debts. 
 
 heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit 
 made willing, and they brought the Lord's offering 
 to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation. 
 In this work all the men, women and rulers united. 
 Men were selected to build the tabernacle, and to 
 prepare the various articles of furniture, out of the 
 voluntary contributions of the people. Moses was 
 soon informed that there was more than enough 
 brought for all that was to be made. He then gave 
 the command to the people, saying, "Let neither man 
 nor woman make any more work for the offering of 
 the sanctuary. For the stuff they had was sufficient 
 for all the work, to make it and too muck." 
 
 Here, then, we have the account of the first build- 
 ing erected for the public worship of God, of which there 
 is any record. And what is the fact in reference to it 1 
 Simply this, that it was built by the free-will offerings 
 of the Lord's people. So far from there being a large 
 debt remaining upon it after its erection, there was 
 more than enough collected to pay for every thing. 
 When the work was finished, it was dedicated to the 
 service of the Lord. "Then a cloud covered the tent 
 of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled 
 the tabernacle." This house was emphatically the 
 Lord's. No man had a personal claim against it. It 
 was not built by joint-stock; nor was it built by money 
 raised on mortgage; but by the voluntary contributions 
 of a poor people, who had nothing but what they 
 asked of the Egyptians before leaving Egypt; and yet 
 the mere gold and silver used in the tabernacle amount- 
 ed to about $550,000. And the presents of silver 
 and gold, which w r ere offered by the twelve princes of 
 Israel, after its erection, amounted to about $12,300 
 more. The conduct of the Israelites in this case, 
 gives no sanction to the modern and approved mode of 
 erecting churches. 
 
 If we follow the Jews in their history, we shall find 
 that the temple of Solomon, the glory of the world, 
 was also built by voluntary contributions. David, 
 before his death, had prepared for its erection aboqt 
 
Primitive Churches. , 9 
 
 £940,000,000 ! ! When this building was finished, 
 there was not a farthing of debt remaining upon it. 
 It was built for the Lord, and dedicated to his service, 
 and no man could say that he held any legal claim 
 against the house of the Lord. It was the Lord's, and 
 his alone. 
 
 After the return of the Jews from Babylon, they 
 rebuilt the temple. It was done in troublesome times. 
 They were few in number, and poor; and yet they found 
 favor with God in their work. It was ultimately built 
 without their being under any obligation to the San- 
 ballats, the Tobiahs or the Geshems, of their day. It 
 was built by the free-will offerings of the people of God. 
 So far, then, as the example of the Old Testament 
 saints is concerned, we find that, in no instance, was 
 the house of the Lord left in debt. It is true that, 
 through discouragement in part, they had stopped, for 
 a time, in building the temple after their return; but 
 still it was paid for as far as it was built, and when it 
 was completed, it was all paid. It was then the Lord's 
 house, and no Jew, much less a heathen, could say 
 that he held any claim against the temple of the living 
 God. 
 
 When we come down to New Testament times, we 
 find that Christians conducted the worship of God in a 
 very simple manner. An upper room or a private house 
 was used for their place of meeting. And in times of 
 persecution, the caves and the dens of the earth, or some 
 unfrequented place, was their sanctuary. The first no- 
 tice that I find of houses being set apart especially for 
 public worship, is at the close o( the second century. 
 Tertullian, in his treatise de Idolatria. c. 7, says that 
 "they came from the idols into the church — from 
 the shop of the adversary into the house of God, 
 in domum Dei." One thing is very certain, they did 
 not erect churches at an expense of from $5,000 to 
 $50,000 to hinder them in the work of the Lord, and 
 to vex and perplex those who should come after them. 
 If need be, they sold their own houses and lands, and 
 laid the money down at the apostles' feet for the pur- 
 1* 
 
10 Church Debts. 
 
 pose of aiding their brethren. This was more need- 
 ful than to erect large and costly edifices which might 
 betaken from them at the will of their persecutors. 
 Eusebius tells us that under the reign of Dioclesian 
 the Bible ivas burnt, (this is an old practice of the 
 enemies of God,) and their churches were demolished. 
 There were about forty churches in Rome which were 
 destroyed during his reign. 
 
 But,* when Constantino came to the throne, he gave 
 Christians liberty to repair and rebuild their churches. 
 He not only prohibited pagan worship, but gave com- 
 mand that the Christian churches should be built higher 
 and more capacious than before; and also that the gov- 
 ernors of the different provinces should assist them, 
 and furnish them with whatever was necessary in the 
 erection of churches. So then, down to the fourth 
 century, we have no account that the modern custom 
 of building churches without paying for them, was 
 ever thought of This work is left for the improve- 
 ments of the 18th and 19th centuries. 
 
 2d. Church Debts are not of Heathen Origin. I 
 have been permitted to enter many of the temples 
 of the Hindoos; the Mosques and Musjeeds of the 
 Mohammedans; the "towers of silence," and the tem- 
 ples of the Zoroasterites ; and the sacred caves of 
 the Buddhist, as they are found in a heathen 
 land. I have looked with astonishment at the mag- 
 nificence of some of those structures, and have ad- 
 mired the zeal, the industry, and the self-denial of 
 those who erected them, and often have wished 
 that their zeal had been devoted to a better 
 cause. But, while I have admired their zeal and their 
 devotion to idolatry, I have at the same time, been re- 
 proved, in reflecting that the people of God are far 
 behind them in zeal and effort for the promotion of the 
 cause of Christ. In Bombay, for example, the Hindoo 
 population in 1835 was about 200,000, and they had 
 upwards of 400 temples, or one temple to about every 
 500 of the inhabitants. But this is not all. Not one 
 of these temples is in debt, so far as my knowledge of 
 
PARSEE CEMETERY. 
 
 Page 11. 
 
Not of Heathen Origin. 1 1 
 
 them extends. They have all been erected, either by 
 the former Hindoo government; by the legacies of 
 the rich, or by private contributions. It is so with 
 the Mohammedan population. Their Mosques are all 
 paid for. The Parsee population is about 20,000. 
 They have several temples, all out of debt. The last 
 "tower of silence" as it is called, was built by Framjee 
 Cowasjee, on Malabar hill, at an expense of about 
 $25,000. He then gave it as a donation to his nation. 
 Now, when I think of these things, and then cast my 
 eye over this city, and look at her churches of all de- 
 nominations, (about one-fourth enough for the popula- 
 tion,) and think of the fact that, so far as I know, there 
 is scarcely one of them out of debt, I grieve that the 
 cause of Christ is so dishonored. As to the Presby- 
 terian churches in this city where is there one, from 
 the First Church, with its immense wealth, down to 
 the humblest mission station in connection with us that 
 is free from debt?* Is there one? If there be one, 
 Mr. Editor, please name the church, and let the fact be 
 known that there is religion enough, in at least one 
 church among us, to lead them to pay off their debts. 
 We send money to a heathen land with an ill 
 grace, to convert the heathen from the error of 
 their ways, when in zeal and benevolence in the 
 matter of building churches and paying for them, 
 they put us to the blush. When I have urged upon 
 the heathen the duties of repentance and of faith, they 
 have often told me, "Sahib, go convert your own peo- 
 ple before you come to us, for they are worse than we 
 are." I have had to confess that many of the Sahibs 
 are worse than Hindoos: but then I have told them, 
 these are not Christians, though they bear the name. 
 It was well that they did not know the sad truth, that 
 even those who gather around the table of the Lord, 
 often do it in a house, whose rafters are splitting under 
 
 * To the honor of the members of the First Presbyterian Church of 
 this City, I must state, that since the above remarks were published in 
 June, 1845, they have paid off the debt that was upon their own church, 
 and have nobly assisted other churches in paying off theirs. 
 October 1, 1850. 
 
12 Church Debts* 
 
 the weight of the curse of a church debt, or I 
 should have heard that reproach also cast upon the 
 church of Christ. But, not to dwell longer on this part 
 of the subject, let us look at the real parentage of 
 church debts. You will find it, not in the Bible, not in 
 the practice of the ancient Jews, not in that of the 
 Primitive Church, nor even in the practice of the 
 heathen, for they would be ashamed of such conduct: — 
 but, in the pride and covetousness of the church in these 
 latter days. As this statement may not be self-evident 
 to all my readers, I will defer the proof of it till my 
 next letter. If any one can show a nobler origin let him 
 do it : and let all pray, and pray earnestly, that the God 
 of heaven may speedily deliver all his churches from 
 the curse, the unutterable curse of church debts. 
 Yours, trulv, in the war against Church Debts. 
 
 W. R. 
 
 LETTER III. 
 
 In my last letter, I said that the origin of Church 
 debts must be traced to the pride and covetousness of 
 the church of Christ. It most assuredly is not found 
 in the humility and liberality of the church. If the 
 professed followers of the Saviour were now really 
 poor, and did but possess the spirit of their Lord or of 
 the Apostles, they would no more think of building 
 churches, and then leave them pressed down by a 
 heavy debt, than the apostles would have thought of 
 making an Elder of Simon Magus, or a Deacon of 
 Alexander, the Coppersmith. The thought would be 
 as far from their minds, as the proud and the covetous 
 are from the kingdom of heaven. 
 
 Do not suppose, however, that I am now speaking 
 against the custom of erecting costly houses of wor- 
 ship. I am only speaking against the practice of not 
 paying for them. The propriety, however, of building 
 
A Heathen Custom. 13 
 
 such churches, and the religion of the measure, we 
 shall consider at another time. Nor would I have you 
 suppose that I am an advocate for that niggardliness of 
 feeling, which would make the house of God the most 
 uncomfortable, and uninviting place in the town or 
 community. There are such buildings, which are not 
 only a disgrace to the Christian character of those 
 who worship in them, but also a reproach to them as 
 a civilized people. Some people seem to think that the 
 practising of that religion, which requires them to en- 
 dure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ, con- 
 sists, in part at least, in doing penance, by sitting on 
 hard and uncomfortable seats ; and not in "trembling 
 at the word of God," but in shivering under it, while 
 coldly spoken in a cold and cheerless house. But, 
 broken windows — hostility to paint— the absence of de- 
 cency and comfort in the house of God— the prostrate 
 walls around the chambers of the dead. — and the graves 
 of their fathers trodden down by the lowing herd, or 
 uprooted by the swine of the field — accord not with 
 the views which I entertain of the religion of the gos- 
 pel. A people who have not religion enough to take 
 care even of the graves of their fathers, or to make 
 themselves comfortable in their own house of worship, 
 have not religion enough to sustain their minister, or 
 to profit by the means of grace. And if such a people 
 do not ultimately starve their minister out of his office 
 among them, it will be owing to influences over which 
 they have no control. 
 
 1 have said that the practice of building churches 
 and not paying for them, has no precedent in the word 
 of God, as exemplified either in the conduct of the 
 Jewish, or of the Christian Church. Nor does it re- 
 ceive any countenance from the conduct of the hea- 
 then, who may, in this case, follow the light of nature, 
 or the promptings of their feelings as men. I venture 
 here the declaration, that you will not find a temple of 
 any description, among any of the Heathen nations now 
 on the face of the earth, that is in debt. China, with 
 her more than 300 millions, and India, with her 130 
 
 
 / 
 
1 
 
 
 14 Church Debts. 
 
 millions, have not one temple in debt. Did ancient 
 Greece, or Rome, or Egypt ever have one in debt \ 
 No; the temples of the gods belonged to the gods. 
 They were sacred, They were built by the people 
 for the gods, and were freely and unreservedly dedica- 
 ted to their service. It is left for those, who glory in 
 the light of revelation, and civilization, and refinement 
 to do a deed, which never disgraced the annals of a 
 heathen nation, sunk in the deepest of moral degrada- 
 tion. Oh! it looks like sanctified mockery, to see the 
 hoary-headed and reverend ministers of Jesus Christ, 
 the devout looking company of elders and deacons, 
 and the multitude of consecrated followers of Christ, 
 all unite together, and by one solemn act of prayer 
 and praise, lay the foundation; rear up and dedicate to 
 God, a house for his worship, which they know 
 belongs not to them to give, and which, in a few 
 months or years afterwards, may be seized on, and 
 made merchandise of in the market. Such a scene re- 
 minds me of what I have often witnessed in the festival 
 of Gunputtee in Bombay. The Moor-tee-kur-ta, (the 
 maker of images,) fashions the idol — the Brahmun con- 
 secrates it — the multitude dress it in costly robes, and 
 after adoring it for ten days, and carrying it in solemn 
 procession from temple to temple, they strip it of its 
 costly attire, and then most devoutly, cast it into the sea. 
 This is heathenism. But does Christian conduct exem- 
 plify itself in devoting a house to God by solemn prayer, 
 and then after a few years, sacrifice it under the ham- 
 mer of the auctioneer? Is there any real religion in such 
 a course of conduct ? Ananias and Sapphira tried 
 the experiment, upon their own responsibility, of devot- 
 ing property to God, and keeping back a part of the 
 same. Is there less guilt now in a whole church doing 
 an act almost parallel to it! Judge ye. As to the con- 
 duct of the heathen in the case above cited, every un- 
 prejudiced man must confess, that it is far more con- 
 sistent and common-sense-like than that of Christians 
 in their mode, oftentimes, of managing the worship 
 of God. The Hindoos build their temples and^ay for 
 
GUNESH. 
 
 Page 14. 
 
A Christian Practice. 15 
 
 them, and they are never sacrificed for debt. In 
 the festival of Gunputtee, (the god of wisdom,) the 
 idols are made of clay for the occasion. The casting 
 of them into the sea is designed to prevent them from 
 being touched by unholy hands. It is worthy of 
 notice here, that they never go in debt for these idols, 
 nor for the things they need for the festival. Those 
 who are to conduct the ceremonies collect the neces- 
 sary money. If they succeed in getting a large sum 
 of money, the ceremonies on the occasion will be the 
 more imposing ; and if the amount collected be small, 
 the expense of the idols and their ornaments will be 
 small in proportion. There is good sense and practi- 
 cal wisdom in this part of their conduct. Fas est ab 
 discere hoste. 
 
 Now, let us see how the great mass of Christians 
 proceed in carrying forward the worship of God. 
 They meet together and agree to erect a house of 
 worship. A small portion of the whole amount is ob- 
 tained, and the work is begun and completed. A 
 mortgage is given upon the property for the balance ; 
 and if they can meet the interest upon the mortgage, 
 they are content to remain so, never intending to pay 
 the principal themselves, but very piously leaving this 
 debt to be paid by their children. A few years roll 
 round, and circumstances, over which they have no 
 control, prevent the church from meeting the demands 
 against them. Discouragement ensues; the minister is 
 dismissed for want of support, and the building (that 
 is God's house? !) is sold to the highest bidder, and the 
 flock of Christ is scattered ! Now, why all this? The 
 answer is, they are like the man spoken of in the gos- 
 pel of Luke, (xi\, 29, 30,) whom the people mocked, 
 saying, "this man began to build and was not able to 
 finish V 9 But why were they not able to finish? Be- 
 cause they have spent more in laying the foundations 
 and in completing a part of it, than might have been 
 sufficient to build, and pay for a house of a smaller 
 size, and one which would have afforded ample room 
 for them for years to come. But why did they not 
 
16 Church Debts; 
 
 build such a one? Do you think there wsts any pride 
 about it? Was there hot a desire to erect such & 
 building as would attract— whom? God's children? 
 No : but men of the world, so that they might fill the 
 house and help to pay for it. The conversion of such 
 men is a secondary thing. No matter, now, what 
 may have been the motive in erecting such a house 
 for God's worship, at an expense beyond the means 
 obtained for paying for it ; was there not still mo- 
 ney enough in the hands of the church to be used 
 for the glory of God to pay for it? Certainly there 
 was. Why, then, was it not obtained? It cannot be 
 because the object was not in itself a good one. 
 Nor can it be because there were so many other and 
 superior claims upon the benevolence of the people of 
 God, that this object was as nought, in comparison 
 with them, and was overlooked. By no means. 
 There was, and there is now, in the hands of the 
 church of God, more than enough of money to erect 
 and pay for suitable houses of worship in every part 
 of our land where they are needed. Why, then, was 
 the work not paid for? I can see no adequate cause 
 for it, except the wonderful cohesiveness of the money 
 to the hands of those who possess it. Covetousness 
 has seized upon the professed church of Christ, with 
 such a powerful grasp, that nothing but the merciful 
 interposition of God can save them from spiritual 
 death. Oh ! that the fire of God's love were kindled into 
 a flame in the hearts of all professing Christians ; 
 then would their grasp on God's money be loosed, and 
 the wealth of the church would flow forth in one con- 
 tinued stream of life and salvation, to bless and save 
 the souls of men ! 
 
 That the people of God have an abundance of His 
 money in their hands, which should be disposed of for 
 the glory of their master, no one can doubt. Do they 
 not live, many of them, in their ceiled palaces, and near- 
 ly all of them in the enjoyment of the comforts of life, 
 and I might add, of its luxuries too? Is there a scheme 
 of worldliness that promises temporal gain; — is there a 
 
A Christian Practice. 17 
 
 scene of national joy and amusement not in itself sin- 
 ful ; is there a new fashion or a new mode invented to 
 make life more easy; is there a new enterprise to pro- 
 mote the political prosperity of the nation, or to increase 
 the glory of our country both at home and abroad; 
 is there any society founded for the promotion of the 
 arts or for the cultivation of letters in this great nation 
 that does not draw largely upon the treasury of the 
 Lord through the hands of His people? Point me to one 
 if you can. Why, then, does the house of the Lord 
 lie waste, and why are the watchmen on the walls of 
 Zion faint and dying, for the lack of those means which 
 God's people have directed, in a great degree, from 
 their appropriate channel? I am not finding fault 
 with the activity of Christians in any plan, whose ten- 
 dency is to promote the temporal good of man. But 
 why should they be active in pushing forward their 
 researches in science, in the improvement of the arts, 
 in the improvement and refinement of society in gene- 
 ral, and yet leave the cause of God to languish ? Does 
 this latter cause promise less temporal gain? Or does 
 the money thrown into the treasury of the Lord, yield 
 less interest, and less comfort to the body, and less joy 
 and peace to the soul, than the same amount invested 
 in the stocks of earth, that church members are induced 
 to trust their thousands in the hands of man, while they 
 will not commit their te?is to God for safe keeping? 
 There is something here radically wrong. Jf the 
 pride, covetousness, and selfishness of the church be 
 not the cause of the evil, do tell me what it is. If I 
 am wrong, set me right. And if I am right, then help 
 me on in this work of reform. 
 
 In my next letter, I shall speak of the direct benefits 
 of church debts, as they have been enumerated to me 
 by those who plead for the continuance of the blessing! 
 
 Yours, as ever, in the warfare against church debts, 
 
 W. R. 
 
18 Church Debts. 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 In my last letter I promised to speak of some of 
 the benefits of church debts, as they have been stated 
 to me by the advocates of the system. So far as I 
 have been able to collect and arrange them, they may 
 all be included in these two, viz.: 
 
 1. Church debts act as a bo?id of union, 
 
 2. They produce a spirit of activity ; they keep the 
 church stirring and awake. 
 
 To secure, then, these blessings, I have been told 
 that "it is not the design of those who erect churches 
 to pay for them. Their successors, who are to be 
 benefited by these churches, should help to pay for 
 their erection." 
 
 Such is the mode of reasoning in the case. Let us 
 look at it for a moment. It is said, that it is not the 
 intention of those, who are immediately engaged in 
 the erection of a church, to pay for it themselves, but 
 to leave a portion of the debt to be paid by those who 
 may succeed them. Is this acting according to the 
 principles of the gospel? Is it honest? What right 
 have any set of men to engage in an enterprise which 
 they do not mean to accomplish ; but, as soon as they 
 can, throw the burden of sustaining it on the shoulders 
 of others; and all this, too, for the glory of God? It 
 may accord with the spirit and with the wisdom of 
 this world; but it is the antipodes of the spirit of the 
 gospel. 
 
 Now, what course does such an association, or 
 church, or congregation, or whatever you may choose 
 to call them, pursue. They agree to build a house for 
 the worship of God, in a style and at an expense far 
 beyond their spirit of liberality, or their present avail- 
 able amount of funds. This they do for respectability's 
 sake. The house must be just so, or it will not be at- 
 tractive. It must be " second to none around them." 
 That is settled. |The next thing is to raise the funds. 
 
Their so-called Benefits. 19 
 
 Messis. A., B., C, and D. subscribe so much towards 
 the object, and lend, on interest, a much larger amount. 
 Subscriptions from the widow, the orphan, and the 
 fatherless, and from all who may feel disposed to con- 
 tribute, swell the amount. The house is built. But a 
 balance of some thousands remaining, Mr. E. lends 
 that sum, and secures himself by a mortgage on the 
 property. God's house? is now ready for his people to 
 worship in. It is devoted to His service entirely ! A 
 minister must now be had. Where can one be found? 
 Paul, in his Epistle to Timothy, describes the charac- 
 ter of the man who was adapted to the work of the 
 ministry in his day. He must be blameless, vigilant, 
 sober, not given to zcine, not greedy of Jilthy lucre; one 
 that ruletli well his own house, having his children in 
 subjection with all gravity ; apt to teach, &c. He did 
 not require him to be apt to draw money out of the 
 purses of the saints; or of a popular address, or to be 
 eloquent, and of polished manners. The reason of this, 
 however, is manifest. For, 
 
 1st. Paul had all his ideas of ministerial character 
 and qualifications directly from his Master, who was 
 more strict than the feelings of the present age de- 
 mand. 
 
 2d. He did not live amidst the refinements and the 
 improvements of the nineteenth century, especially in 
 building churches. 
 
 3d. Christians had nothing else to do in his day but 
 to labor for the salvation of souls and the spread of the 
 gospel, besides the care of their own families. They 
 had nothing to do with their money, but to lay it by on 
 the first day of the week as the Lord had prospered 
 them, for spreading abroad the knowledge of Christ, 
 and for aiding their poor brethren, so as to allow their 
 ministers " to give themselves continually to the minis- 
 try of the word and to prayer," so that they might not 
 neglect their appropriate work to feed the flock of 
 Christ, as they were not ordained to the work of col- 
 lecting dollars and cents. 
 
 4th. The church had no interest then in the stocks 
 
20 Church Debts. 
 
 and schemes of earth. They held no Sabbath-break- 
 ing offices under the government; they had no en- 
 gagement to transport the mail on the Sabbath; they 
 owned no Sabbath-breaking rail road or steamboat 
 stock, and of course had both time and means enough 
 to do all their duty, and to leave the apostles to do 
 theirs. The politics of the world did not need the aid 
 of Christians as now. 
 
 5th. As Paul was "in bodily presence weak, and in 
 speech contemptible," according to the testimony of 
 an enemy; and, as he says himself, he was not sent to 
 preach the gospel " with wisdom of words ;" and since 
 his own " preaching was not with enticing words of 
 man's wisdom," it would not be very appropriate for 
 him to mention eloquence as a necessary qualification 
 in a minister of the gospel. 
 
 Thus you see that Paul recommended just such kind 
 of ministers as were suited for the work of the Lord in 
 his day. But things are very different now, as any 
 body may see. The most of our congregations have 
 something else to do than merely to support the gospel 
 among them. They have to support their pride and 
 worldliness, not only in their persons and families, but 
 in their churches also. In the selection of a minister, 
 therefore, it is often a consideration of the greatest 
 importance to find a man, (a good man, of course.) but 
 such a good man as will help them, by preaching the 
 gospel, to do all this, and to share with them also the 
 burden of the church debt ; this first-born of pride and 
 covetousness. Could they not do it themselves, with- 
 out the aid of the minister, and let him pursue his ap- 
 propriate work to labor for the conversion of men to 
 God, and to build up the saints? Certainly, they could. 
 They could go to their own coffers, or their wealthier 
 brethren could go to theirs, and take from thence the 
 gold and silver which is cankered, and the rust of 
 which shall witness against them, and shall burn their 
 flesh as fire in the last days, and in one hour pay off 
 all the debt that remains upon their church. Not only 
 so; they could pay off all the debt of all the churches 
 
The Work to be Done. 21 
 
 of the living God, and build as many more as the cause 
 of Christ demands, and, after all, have more than enough 
 to hinder them in their journey towards heaven. But 
 it is not their intention to pay off the debt. They mean 
 that others too shall share in this work of benevolence 
 and of love ! This is the work to be done. How, then, 
 shall it be accomplished 1 
 
 The first thing now to be done is to arrange the pe- 
 cuniary matters of the church in such a way that the 
 members, by keeping together, and by continued or 
 by special efforts, may collect enough to pay the inte- 
 rest of the debt on the church, as it becomes due. And 
 the next thing to be done is to induce others to unite 
 with them (no matler where they come from) in the 
 pious work of bearing each other's burdens. There 
 was a time, and there will be again, when "God will 
 make a common man more precious than fine gold, 
 and a great man than the golden wedge of Ophir;" 
 but, for the present emergency, a man without gold is 
 of little value. And hence it is, that a man with gold, 
 and without religion, is frequently more valued than a 
 man with religion, but zuithout gold. 
 
 Stocks rise in the market, according to the demand 
 for them. And so it is in the churches in these latter 
 days. If the demand be for polemic preaching to pro- 
 mote pugilism in the churches, or for ponderous purses 
 to push forward the car of pride, pageantry, and pomp, 
 then will polemics and purses command a premium in 
 the churches. But if, on the contrary, the demand be 
 for broken and contrite spirits, to widen and deepen 
 the river that makes glad the city of our God, as it 
 flows through this curse-smitten earth, then such will 
 be highly prized. It is no strange thing, then, to see 
 churches now leave the road marked out for them by 
 the Captain of their salvation, to turn to the right or 
 left, according as they have their own purposes to ac- 
 complish by it. 
 
 The thing so much sought after now is not grace, 
 but gold. How shall it be obtained? Men must be 
 brought into the church who possess it. But, how 
 
22 Church Dehts. 
 
 shall they be brought in? The following conversation, 
 that was heard in this city, no matter now when or by 
 whom, will help to explain this difficulty. 
 
 Elder A. Good morning, brother B. Say, how did 
 you like Mr. C.'s sermon yesterday'? 
 
 Brother B. Very much, indeed. It is just the kind 
 of preaching we need. It is so plain that every body 
 could understand it. And then it was so scriptural. 
 I think, if we had such preaching, we should soon see 
 a change in our congregation. Were you not much 
 pleased ? 
 
 Elder A. Well, I can't say but I was; but then he 
 will not do for our congregation. He is not the man 
 for us. 
 
 Brother B. Why not? J think our best people 
 would vote for him. I know they were greatly edified 
 yesterday. I really was hoping that 
 
 Elder A. The Truth is, brother B., such preaching 
 will not collect the kind of people that we need just 
 now. 1 don't doubt but he could do great good; but a 
 church full of a certain kind of people don't add much 
 to the treasury. You understand me. But there is 
 Mr. D. ; he is just the man we need. He is a popular 
 man. If we get him, (and he can be got,) you will 
 soon see a row of carriages, every Sabbath, extending 
 
 from the church, down street, for more than a 
 
 square. He would soon fill our church, and pay ofT our 
 debt. But I must go. Remember the congregational 
 meeting to-morrow night. Good morning. 
 
 I will merely state here now, that at the election 
 for a pastor, Mr. C. was not chosen, nor is their debt 
 yet removed. They don't mean to pay it, but are la- 
 boring and praying that others may help them to do 
 what they might easily manage to do themselves. 
 
 Such conduct reminds me of a singular custom that 
 exists among the Hindoos, which I will mention, and 
 conclude this letter. It is this. Every Hindoo, who 
 is not physically incapacitated, must be married, ac- 
 cording to the laws of Menu, at least once in his life. 
 To secure this result, the parents do all the courting 
 
An Interesting Custom. 23 
 
 for their children, whom they betroth at the ages of 
 from six to twelve years. This is, in fact, the mar- 
 riage. The ceremony on this occasion occupies ten 
 days. When these betrothed ones arrive at the age 
 of maturity, having lived in the meantime at their re- 
 spective homes, the betrothing is confirmed, and the 
 husband takes his wife now to his own house. The 
 services on this occasion occupy several days. As 
 marriage is considered one of the most important 
 events in the life of a Hindoo, no expense is spared to 
 make the wedding honorable to the caste to which the 
 parties belong. The Brahmtins and the musicians are 
 to be paid for their services, and all the friends present 
 are to be feasted. Each one must carry home with 
 him a present of a fan, money, or something else 
 from the hands of the married pair, that they may 
 supplicate the gods to bestow upon them many sons. 
 In a vast majority of cases, the parents have not the 
 means to meet all the expenses of the occasion. They 
 give what they can, and borrow the balance from the 
 shroffs, (brokers,) for which they pay, never less than 
 twelve per cent., and oftentimes twenty-five. Time 
 rolls on. These parents die, and the borrowed money 
 is not paid. The shroff then makes his demand on the 
 young man, who has to bear the burden of the debt 
 his father contracted at his marriage, to support the 
 dignity of their caste, and to propitiate the favor of the 
 gods. He is thus, at his entrance on the business of 
 life, encumbered with a debt which weighs him down, 
 and which keeps him at the mercy of his creditor all 
 his days. Should he, in his turn, have children to 
 marry, he pursues the same course. If I had you 
 there now, I could point you out men who are in debt, 
 not only for their own marriage, but are paying inter- 
 est for the money which was expended at their father's, 
 yea, their grandfather's, marriage ! This is what I 
 call inheriting the blessing of their fathers, a-la-mode 
 Hindoo. 
 
 But, seriously, where is the justice or the religion of 
 such a system of things'? I am sure there is just as 
 
24 Church Debts. 
 
 much good se?ise, and quite as much religion in it, as 
 there is in the unscriptural practice of congregations 
 incurring a debt in the erection of a church, which 
 they cannot or do not pay, and which ihey piously 
 throw upon the necks of children. It is an abominable 
 iniquity. 
 
 I shall consider, in my next letter, the "bond of 
 union''' and the activity which church debts produce. 
 
 I remain yours, as ever, in the war against church 
 debts. W. R. 
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 We are now prepared to look at the two great 
 blessings of church debts, as mentioned in my last let- 
 ter. We are gravely told that church debts, in the first 
 place, act as a bond of union; and, secondly, that they 
 keep the church members active and awake. 
 
 1. Church debts act as a bond of union ; and, there- 
 fore, are not only to be endured, but are, in themselves, 
 actually good. 
 
 I certainly have no objection to unions, when pro- 
 perly formed and of the right kind. But surely every 
 union is not a blessing. If a worthy j'ounglady should 
 unite herself to a young man, honest, industrious, in- 
 telligent, and sober, and in other respects worthy of 
 her, no one could find reason to object. But would 
 you, for the sake of promoting union, recommend her 
 to marry a drunkard, or a drunkard in the bud, or, 
 what is infinitely worse, a drunkard-maker ? Surely 
 not. That would be the union of virtue to vice, and 
 the spirit of life to the body of death. Neither would 
 you favor the union of Church and State, though it 
 should be done with silken cords by the soft hands of 
 the sons of Loyola. It is not union, in itself considered, 
 to which I would object, but it is the kind of union 
 contemplated which we oppose. 
 
The Union they Produce. 25 
 
 But let us look at the union that a church debt pro- 
 duces. And before we do so, it may not be amiss to 
 refer again to the Apostolic church, to see what was 
 the bond of union among them. By reference to an 
 ancient history, we learn that the members of the 
 church continued steadfast in the Apostle's doctrine and 
 fellowship, and that the same grand objects which oc- 
 cupied the thoughts, excited the feelings, and prompted 
 the daily and fervent prayers of the Apostles, possess- 
 ed the minds of the church members, and bound them 
 together as one family in Christ. They had all things 
 common, because they had one common cuuse. They 
 who possessed an abundance, parted with their goods 
 to give to their poorer brethren, as they had need. 
 The love of God shed abroad in their hearts, and un- 
 tiring zeal for the salvation of their fellow- men, and 
 their keeping in view the recompense of reward, 
 formed a three-fold cord, not easily broken, to bind 
 their hearts together. It was tied tight around them 
 by the hand of persecution. This was their bond of 
 union. Is it not surprising that they never seemed to 
 think of the magic power of a church debt as a bond 
 of union? They might then just as easily have dis- 
 pensed with their three-fold cord of lore, zeal, and hope, 
 and the hard knot of persecution with which it was 
 tied, as the enlightened churches of the nineteenth 
 century have done. But, it is presumed, they did what 
 they thought right in the circumstances in which they 
 were placed. 1 certainty am not blaming them for 
 the course they pursued ; for they seemed to be whol- 
 ly ignorant of any other way of doing the work of 
 their Lord, and of journeying home to heaven, than 
 by facing danger, enduring the cross, despising the 
 shame of it, and resisting unto blood, striving against 
 sin. All I mean to fix your mind upon now is, the 
 simple fact, that they could be united without a church 
 debt. But, do not forget the objects which these simple- 
 hearted Christians aimed to obtain by their bond of 
 union. It was, to glorify God in the salvation of their 
 fellow-men, irrespective of their grade in society, their 
 
26 Church Debts. 
 
 name, or nation. With them, a man was a man, whe- 
 ther he was found " faring sumptuously every day," or 
 "sitting by the wayside begging." But times have 
 changed, and men with them. And now a church debt 
 must do for us what love and zeal did for the Apostolic 
 churches. 
 
 Let us see how this bond unites now the members 
 of the same household of faith. Here is a congrega- 
 tion regulaily organized, on the improved plan in these 
 latter days, with her full corps of Trustees. Men like 
 Stephen, " full of faith and of the Holy Ghost," are not 
 essentially necessary here, as the work to be done may 
 be done without prayer, and without the wisdom of 
 the Holy Spirit, as it often is. This congregation have 
 procured for themselves a house of worship. It is just 
 the thing. It is large enough for them, and for gene- 
 rations to come. It is not paid for. A large debt re- 
 mains upon it, and that is the bond of union. Now 
 they are ready for action. The work to be done is 
 three-fold. 1st. To convert men; 2d. To pay the in- 
 terest on the debt ; 3d. Then the debt itself. These 
 are the grand objects of their aim as a church. At 
 first, the weight of souls, dying in sin, presses heavily 
 on their conscience, and impels ihem to action, and to 
 be united in their action. But another claim comes in 
 upon them — the interest of a heavy debt. Now it al- 
 ways happens that, when two tilings claims the atten- 
 tion at the same time, the one which the man feels to 
 be the most urgent at the time is the one he will attend 
 to, however the other may be neglected. The one 
 must be attended to; the other may be postponed. It 
 is just so in the matter of saving souls and paying inte- 
 rest money. This last item the church feels must be 
 attended to ; and hence, for the time being, the saving 
 of souls becomes a secondary consideration. They 
 seem to reason thus: creditors won't wait on us, but 
 God will wait on sinners; and of course they act ac- 
 cordingly. It is a hard thing, as every minister can 
 testify, to recall the minds of the people back to the 
 work of laboring directly for the salvation of men, af- 
 
How they Bind the Mertibers. 27 
 
 ter a special effort has been made to pay the interest 
 of a heavy debt. Where, now, is the spirit they once 
 manifested for the conversion of men? It is gone. 
 Their conversation and their thoughts are turned, and 
 necessarily, too, from souls and salvation to debts and 
 dollars. 
 
 Church debts, we are told, act as a bond of union 
 among the members of the church. 1 grant it. The 
 union which they form, however, is not one of love to 
 each other ; but one of obligation to those who hold legal 
 claims against the property. Jt makes the people 
 slaves ; for the Bible declares that " the borrower is 
 the slave of the lender." And, in many cases, the 
 lender has no more real love for the house of God, and 
 his people, than Sanballat had for the temple of the 
 Jews. How would it appear in our eyes if the Jews 
 had erected the temple of the Lord in the days of Ne- 
 hemiah, and to do so had borrowed, on mortgage, the 
 necessary funds from Tobiah the Ammonite, and Ge- 
 shem the Arabian? Bad as they were, they had too 
 much religion to do so. But Jews, in our day, and 
 men " who deny the Lord that bought them," hold 
 mortgages on Christian churches. 
 
 When the members of a church build a house for 
 the Lord, not by voluntary contributions, but on the 
 joint-stock principle, then the debt on the church forms 
 a strong bond of union among the stockholders, at all 
 events, to bind them together. But what is the thing 
 for which they feel that they are bound together in 
 such tender bonds I Is it to save souls only, or is it, 
 in part, to secure their property invested in God's 
 house? I wonder if there is no desire, at any time, 
 among some of the stockholders, to have an attractive 
 preacher, so that the house may be filed, and that the value 
 of the property invested in the house may rise in proportion 
 as the fame of the preacher is in the ascendant ? I do not 
 sav that it is so. I remember that I once asked a cap- 
 tain in the British army in Bombay, whether he ever 
 felt desirous that some of the officers above him should 
 die, so that he might be promoted 1 He frankly con- 
 
2ft Church Debts. 
 
 fessed that he often had such desires. He had no spe- 
 cial desire that his brother officers should be shot in 
 battle, but he did desire that he himself might be pro- 
 moted ; and as the only chance of that was to have 
 some of the superior officers fall gloriously on the field 
 of battle, he had no special objection to that mode of 
 his being promoted. Now, as Solomon tells us that 
 "as in water face answereth to face, so the heart of 
 man to man," we may conclude that the heart of a 
 Christian man in the church militant answers to the 
 heart of a Christian man in the army militant. And 
 we may draw this conclusion the more readily from 
 facts like the following: Elder Nameless, of the City 
 of Brotherly Love, owned property in one of God's 
 houses, in the shape of a pew, to the amount of nearly 
 $400, including a cushion, (not a pillow for the elbows 
 to lean on, according to the Asiatic custom, but a sim- 
 ple cushion.) He was induced to worship God else- 
 where, and his property was offered for sale. After 
 various offers and refusals, he finally, as a special fa- 
 vor, sold it to his brother Christian at an advance of 
 $200. Thus, by this simple speculation, he had re- 
 funded to him more than he had given to the support 
 of the gospel in that church for the previous five 
 years. In giving me this account, he did not fail to 
 point out to me one of the benefits of good preaching, 
 viz.: it raises the value of the stock in the churches. 
 Do you not see how strong a bond of union a church 
 debt is? 
 
 There are others who are under similar bonds of 
 attachment to God's house; but with them the attach- 
 ment arises from another consideration. The stock 
 is below par. Still, their love for the church flourishes, 
 first, from a consideration of the good already receiv- 
 ed ; and, second, from the hope of a future and greater 
 good in the rise of the stock. 
 
 Persecution for righteousness' sake united the hearts 
 of primitive Christians in a firm bond of love; and la- 
 boring to win souls to Christ has done the same thing. 
 But, we are informed in these latter days, that the 
 
Their Influence. 29 
 
 family of Christ can be united, not on the principle of 
 attraction, by the love of Christ, but on the principle of 
 compression, by the specific gravity of a church debt. 
 Why did not the primitive Christians discover this 
 principle ? Alas, they had not learned to spiritualize 
 the words of their Lord. They supposed that they 
 must understand His words literally. And that when 
 he told them not to lay up for themselves treasures on 
 the earth ; that it was more blessed to give than to re- 
 ceive ; that he that giveth must do it with liberality ; 
 and that they should " lend, hoping for nothing again," 
 not even interest on money lent to build a house for the 
 worship of God ; they supposed He meant just what 
 He said, and they acted accordingly. But if they could 
 only have followed the churches in this land, instead 
 of the church in Jerusalem, as their model; if they 
 could have seen the happy influence of church debts, 
 to unite the hearts of Christians in bonds of love to 
 God and one another; how tenderly they love one an- 
 other; how deep their sympathy flows; how willing 
 they are to pluck out their own eyes (not their neigh- 
 bor's) for their ministers; how tender they are of their 
 reputation ; how willingly, promptly, and liberally they 
 support their ministers, by yielding them "that com- 
 petent worldly maintenance which they promise, and 
 whatever else they see is needful for the honor of reli- 
 gion and their comfort among them ;" how careful 
 they are to roll all the care of worldly things from off 
 their pastors, so as to enable them to give themselves 
 M continually to prayer and to the ministry of the 
 word;" how tenderly and patiently the stronger 
 churches support the weak; how united in their 
 prayers and efforts to restore the wanderers from God 
 to the bosom of their Father ; how quickly churches 
 arise all over the land, where they are needed ; how 
 firmly they resist error, and especially the error of 
 those who hold that " gain is godliness," and that jus- 
 tify the wicked for reward in church or state ; how 
 firmly they resist the encroachments of the Man of 
 Sin ; and how careful to train up their children in the 
 
 3 
 
30 Church Debts, 
 
 nurture and admonition of the Lord; — yes, if they 
 could have seen all this, and had but followed the ex- 
 ample of the church in the nineteenth century, we 
 should not have had the sad accounts we have of their 
 being stoned for infringing on the rights of others ; lo$~ 
 ing their heads for reproving adulterous rulers; and be- 
 ing beaten for producing such Ephesian, uproarious 
 tumults as they did. But they were ignorant of the 
 blessing of church debts as a bond of union, and of the 
 mighty power of unpaid for houses, bells, costly organs, 
 and steeples, to draw men from the love of the world to 
 the love of God. They acted ignorantly and in un- 
 belief of the blessings of church debts, and surely we 
 ought to forgive them. What think ye ? 
 
 I will consider the stirring effect of a debt upon the 
 churches in my next. 
 
 I remain yours, as ever, in the warfare against 
 church debts. W. R. 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 There is but one more of the so-called blessings of 
 church debts, which I wish to consider before I speak 
 of the positive evils of the system. That one is the 
 spirit of activity which a debt produces in the members 
 of a church : " it keeps them in exercise," (we are 
 told ;) " it gives them something to do ;" " it keeps 
 them at the work." 
 
 Activity is essential to the spiritual health of any 
 church. As in the natural, so in the spiritual world, 
 activity is the very soul of existence. Look at yonder 
 Asiatic pool of water. Why that death-like silence 
 which reigns over it ? No voice of the wild bird is 
 heard there. No ripple is made on its green and leaden 
 surface by any of the finny tribe which God has made 
 to sport in the waves. The broad leaves of the Lotus 
 
The Krishnu River. 31 
 
 lie lazily on its surface, and spread themselves far and 
 wide amid the mosses which luxuriate among them. 
 Baleful exhalations rise up, and spread contagion and 
 death all around. Why all this? You tell me it is 
 no surprising thing. It is, must be so. It is a stagnant 
 pool. And like the dark waters of the fabled Acheron, 
 or the bitter waters of Meribah,it must spread disease 
 and death all around. 
 
 But look now at the little stream which gushes out 
 from the Gae-mooch, the cow's mouth.* It tumbles 
 over rock after rock in its onward course. At one 
 time it dashes forward with wild impetuosity. At an- 
 other, it glides smoothly on with majestic stillness. Its 
 waters teem with life. Here, in the gently whirling 
 eddies, and, there, in the foaming waves, the fish leap 
 and sport at their ease, and rejoice in their healthy 
 and secure abode, as if conscious of the fact that they 
 have been deified and are adored by the inhabitants of 
 the land. The wild beasts of the forest, the lowing 
 herds and the bleating flocks of the plain, wend their 
 way to its margins, and drink of its life-giving stream, 
 while the air resounds with the melodious warbling of 
 the songsters of the wood, which here find a shady re- 
 treat amidst the groves and the flowers which skirt ita 
 banks. Temple after temple, and village after village, 
 adorn its shores, w T hile myriads of the people plunge 
 into the waves to drink, to bathe, and to adore this 
 incarnation of the God. Beauty, health, freshness, life, 
 and joy abound. And why all this? I answer, the 
 Krishnu is a flowing stream. " It lives," as the Hin- 
 doos forcibly express it, and it retains its life by ita 
 activity. 
 
 What is true in regard to the fountain and the pool, 
 is true of the human frame. See yon vile Yogee. His 
 hair is matted and twisted in with coir, (fibres of the 
 cocoa-nut,) and formed into a huge rope, which is 
 
 * The Hindoos have chiseled a large rock into the shape of a coy>\ 
 head, with open mouth, through which the waters of the Krishnu river 
 flow, as they issue from the mountain. 
 
32 Church Debts. 
 
 twined around his smeared brow. The vermin crawl 
 over him. His arm is paralyzed. His nails are 
 long and twisted, like the horns of the Hureen, (a species 
 of antelope.) His senses are stupefied with the intoxi- 
 cating bhang. He is but one remove from idiocy it- 
 self. Why all this? The answer is — want of the 
 needful exercise. 
 
 But what is true in regard to the body is also true 
 in regard to the faculties of the soul. Nor is it less 
 true in spiritual things. There is just as much neces- 
 sity for Christians to exercise the graces of the spirit, 
 to cause them to grow and flourish, as there is for the 
 child to exercise its limbs, that it may grow up into 
 the stature and strength of a perfect man. God has 
 made men for activity. And it is only when they do 
 violence to the laws of their rational and moral nature, 
 that they feel disposed to sit down in inglorious ease, 
 and spend their lives in laboriously doing nothing. Like 
 the Fakeer, many seem to think that the very essence 
 of bliss on earth consists in stupidity, or in being the 
 mere passive recipients of such joy as may find its 
 way into their souls through their half-closed organs 
 of sense. And like the Hindoo devotee, with them 
 glory itself consists in mere absorption. 
 
 It is owing, I doubt not, to the erroneous views 
 which many in the church have on this point, that we 
 see so many overgrown infants in the Church of 
 Christ in these latter days. When they should be 
 strong men, and enduring hardness as good soldiers of 
 Christ, they have need to be fed still on milk. They 
 have, like Jeshurun, " waxed fat" in their spiritual in- 
 dolence, and are now both a burden to themselves and 
 to those who have, in self-defence, to carry them for- 
 ward. A man, laboring under an attack of the gout, 
 once called on Dr. A., of London, for a remedy. He 
 said to the man, in a stern tone, " Go home, sir; live 
 on sixpence a-day, and earn it." If all the members of 
 our churches would, as Christ tells them, labor for the 
 meat that perishes not, we should not find so many 
 smothering spiritually in their own indolence. Activity 
 
THE YOGEE. 
 
Activity, 33 
 
 is the cure. The Christian who is active in the cause 
 of God is, and must be, a growing Christian. Place 
 him where you choose, he will ripen for heaven. Let 
 him labor in the Sabbath school — in the Bible class — 
 in the prayer meeting — in visiting the sick — in doing 
 good, by conversing with his fellow-men, and in invit- 
 ing them to come to the house of God, or in convers- 
 ing with them of the love of God; and he will be like 
 the tree planted by the streamlets of water, which, 
 being thus watered daily, will bear fruit abundantly. 
 It was so with the primitive Christians. They were 
 oft-times driven from their homes by the hand of per- 
 secution, but they went every where preaching the 
 gospel. I have no doubt but there are multitudes of 
 persons in this city, men and women, who imagine 
 they are Christians, for they bear the name ; and yet, 
 after all their professions of love to God and man, 
 they have never yet had so much religion as to ask 
 their friends and their neighbors to come to God, or 
 to go with them to heaven. Yes, there are many in 
 the churches who are transacting business with their 
 fellow-men, whom they know are on the road to end- 
 less woe; and yet, perhaps, for fear of losing their 
 custom or their favor, they permit them to go on and 
 perish in their sins. These are active in the world, 
 but stupid in the church. 
 
 If anything can be done to arouse the man and 
 make him active in the cause of God, so that he may 
 be saved, (for I hold it a self-evident truth, that no 
 lazy man can get to heaven,) it will be a blessing to 
 the church and to the world. But will a church debt 
 do it? It has been proposed; it has been tried; and 
 it has invariably had the contrary effect. What min- 
 ister ever preached or prayed better because he was 
 encumbered with a church debt? Do the elders pray 
 better for being in debt ? Does it promote the holi- 
 ness of the members to be in debt, when God says, 
 " Owe no man anything?" When, I ask, has a church 
 debt made Christians pray more for each other? When 
 has it released them from the perplexity of worldly 
 3* 
 
34 Church Debts. 
 
 affairs, to enable them to devote their whole hearts 
 and their time to the service of God? It never did, 
 and never will. 
 
 It may produce activity, but not for the salvation of 
 men. None of the Apostles ever needed this stimulus to 
 urge them forward. The love of Christ constrained 
 them to be active for God ; but zve need a church debt! 
 — a sad exchange for the love of God. It is the refine- 
 ment of nonsense. 
 
 But I have said enough on this part of the subject. 
 I have a few thoughts on the positive evils of the sys- 
 tem. 
 
 I am yours, as ever, in the war against church debts. 
 
 W. R. 
 
 LETTER VII. 
 
 As I have considered, in my previous letters, the so- 
 called blessings of ** Church Debts," I will now turn 
 your attention to some of the innumerable positive 
 evils of the system. Eternity alone can fully reveal 
 these evils. The system is in the highest degree in- 
 jurious to the cause of Christ on earth. It ruins souls ; 
 it hinders the spirituality of the church, and, as to some 
 churches, it operates more powerfully than all other 
 causes put together to render the preaching of the 
 gospel of no effect. It is more to be dreaded than the 
 legion of demons which possessed the man of Gadara. 
 Him they stripped, and drove out to dwell in the tombs, 
 and they drove the whole herd of swine to destruction. 
 But a church groaning under the weight of an enor- 
 mous debt shuts many out of the kingdom of God, by 
 preventing them, at the outset, from hearing the word 
 of God. 
 
 To give point, however, to my remarks, I observe 
 that the system of going in debt in the erection of 
 churches leads, directly and unavoidably, to the sin of 
 hypocrisy, 
 
Their Evils, 35 
 
 I do not say that any church means to act the part 
 of hypocrisy in the matter ; but the system leads to it. 
 I am not tenacious of the word in this case. I will 
 give you my meaning, and you may call it what you 
 please. 
 
 I take it, then, for granted that the Lord Jesus Christ 
 has a people on the earth, who are called by his name, 
 and who profess to possess His spirit. To them, and 
 not to others, has he committed the glorious work of 
 spreading abroad the knowledge of his name and cha- 
 racter throughout the earth. To them, especially, does 
 the command apply to keep his Sabbaths and to reve- 
 rence his sanctuary. They are to be the lights of the 
 world ; the reflectors of the glory of God ; living epis- 
 tles, to be read and known of all men. Just as in a 
 looking-glass, the natural features of the man that 
 looks into it are seen, so God designs that those who 
 look into his word, or at the lives and conduct of 
 Christians, God's " living epistles," may see there the 
 holy character of God drawn out in clear lines, and, 
 by contrast, also their own moral deformity fully ex- 
 hibited. But if Christians will not conform their lives 
 to the precepts of the gospel ; if they will manifest a 
 different temper in the world than what the word of 
 God requires, then are they found " false witnesses" 
 for God. The great mass of mankind never will go to 
 the Bible to know what religion is, or what the real 
 character of God may be. They look at God's "liv- 
 ing epistles," to find out from them what is the charac- 
 ter of both. And accordingly as they see Christians 
 act, so will they decide for or against the truth, and 
 the excellency of that religion which they profess. Is 
 it not so? How often have ministers had the cutting 
 remark made to them, by the man of the world, as he 
 pointed to the inconsistent life of some professor of re- 
 ligion — " Ha ! if such are your Christians, I wish not 
 to be one ; and if this be the fruit of Christianity, the 
 world is better without it." I doubt not but you have 
 often heard the remark. And what could you say in 
 reply 1 You must either acknowledge that the man is 
 
86 Church Debts. 
 
 no Christian at all, or, if he be, he does not, in this in- 
 stance, live up to the profession he has made. He pro- 
 fesses one thing, and does another. What do you call 
 such conduct? 
 
 Now, when I look at the Bible, I find that it requires 
 every follower of Christ to be devoted to his service, 
 and to consecrate himself and all he has to the promo- 
 tion of God's glory in the world. And the man who 
 professes religion, professes to do so. Look now at 
 this little band of Christians. They profess to be pil- 
 grims and strangers here. They have taken their 
 Lord for their pattern, and his word for their guide. 
 They seek a city, that is, a heavenly one. They pro- 
 fess that all they have belongs to God, and that they 
 are only stewards appointed by him in the distribution 
 of his gifts and favors. They are laying up treasures, 
 not on the earth, but in heaven. Their grand object 
 on the earth is to glorify God by promoting their own 
 spirituality and that of their brethren, and by instru- 
 mentally saving their fellow-men from the wrath that 
 is to come. This is their aim. Everything else is 
 and must be in subserviency to this. Jesus must be 
 glorified, and they are happy in doing it. Earth must 
 receive Him as her king. 
 
 In carrying forward, then, the single object of their 
 union, see yon Christian band ; they meet together in 
 an upper room. They sing ; they praise ; they pray. 
 And while they talk of the love of God, their hearts 
 burn within them. But they have a work to do for 
 others as well as for themselves. Jesus has died, not 
 for these alone. He is the Saviour for the world of 
 sinners. The Bible is for the enlightenment of the 
 world. They are but the depositories of the truth. 
 They must give it to the world. How, then, shall this 
 be accomplished? Some must go far hence to the 
 Gentiles, while others must stay and edify the flock of 
 Christ at home, and seek to gather into the fold of 
 Christ the wanderers that are near at hand. To aid 
 them in this work, how necessary is it that there should 
 be a house erected which shall accommodate them in 
 
A Striking Contrast. 37 
 
 their worship, and in their celebrating the ordinances 
 of the Lord's house. But their object is to let their 
 light shine out also to others. They are to show forth 
 to others the Lord's death till he come. Looking, then, 
 upon themselves and upon all they have as the Lord's, 
 they contribute, as God may enable them, to erect just 
 such a house as may honor him whose they are, and 
 whom, in this work, they mean to serve. They build 
 not to gratify their pride, for they have none. They 
 build not to attract the admiration of the world; for 
 that would defeat the very object they have in view, 
 viz.: to turn the eyes of men away from the vanities of 
 this world to the glories of heaven. They build not 
 that they may have the chief seats in the house of God 
 here, for that very spirit would deprive them of a seat 
 in the temple above. They build not that the ungodly- 
 may admire their skill in architecture, in sculpture, and 
 painting, for that would turn their eyes from Jesus, 
 They build not that they may make merchandise of 
 the house of God, by selling the chief seats in it to 
 those who pay the most for them, for that w r ould give 
 the preference to the rich worldling, and crowd out of 
 the very sanctuary of God the devout and the humble 
 poor. They build not that they may invest a portion 
 of the Lord's money (falsely called theirs) in the house, 
 and thereby get gain to further plans of their own* 
 They build not under a show of great benevolence to 
 men, to do their souls good, by enticing them into the 
 church through pomp and show, and by abstracting 
 money from their pockets to pay for the house they have 
 erected, so that these worldlings may not be hindered 
 by too heavy a purse from going to heaven. They 
 build not to get them a name in having the " finest 
 house" in the land, while their children shall have the 
 unspeakable pleasure of paying for the pride of their 
 fathers. On the contrary, they build just such a house 
 as will best comport with their character as Christians; 
 one which they can pay for, so as to " owe no man 
 anything;" a house which, when it is completed, they 
 can, with grateful hearts, and in sincerity, dedicate to 
 the service of God, to be his, and his alone, 
 
38 Church Debts. 
 
 Now look at this band of Christians ; poor they may 
 be in this world's goods, but rich in faith, and heirs of 
 the promises. They meet together, and by solemn 
 prayer, and in the deep sincerity of their souls, they 
 devote this house to the service of their God. It is the 
 Lord's; and no man on earth has now any personal 
 claim to it, further than the right to worship in it, both 
 he and his household. Whatever was given towards 
 its erection, was given freely, and without hope of gain. 
 All can now rejoice in the work of their hands. And 
 as they have brought their tithes and offerings to the 
 Lord, they can reasonably and scripturally look up to 
 God for the blessings of his grace to descend and to 
 rest upon them and their families and neighbors. Here 
 is sincerity. Anything else is the contrary. This is 
 according to scripture example and scripture precept 
 This is the apostolic mode of preparing a house for 
 the Lord. Do you approve of it ? 
 
 Now look for a moment at a modern church, with 
 their " building committee." A house is needed. One 
 of 3,000, 5,000, or $10,000 cost would be large enough 
 for the church and the community. But no ; the ex- 
 pense must be twice as large, at least. A small por- 
 tion is given, and in many cases by the widow and 
 the fatherless. Those who are wealthy give sparing- 
 ly, but often lend liberally. The house is built, but not 
 paid for. Mr. A. has lent the money, and has taken a 
 mortgage on the house. It is his in fact, though per- 
 haps not in form. And what now? The ministers of 
 God, old and young, the elders and the people, all as- 
 semble. A sermon is preached — the liberality? of 
 the people is commended — the beauty of the house is 
 praised — great castles are built about prospective good 
 — and perhaps that very house, it is predicted, will be 
 a grand means of hastening on the millennial day — 
 6ongs of praises are sung — God's name is invoked — 
 and the house is most solemnly given to God — and to 
 show the deep sincerity of the people, they have sealed 
 up a Bible in the corner-stone of the building, which 
 had previously been laid there by solemn prayer. Now 
 
How they are Paid, 39 
 
 all are glad. One man rejoices with trembling. He 
 has hope and fear. It is the man who holds the largest 
 claim against God's house. He hopes the house will 
 be filled, and that he will be paid. But he fears it may 
 not be so; and then his conscience troubles him ; for 
 how can he sell God's house, to get back his money ? 
 But time, which waits for no one, moves on. Mr. 
 A. becomes involved in the perplexities of this world. 
 Creditors press on him, or other causes urge him to do 
 what he had never thought of doing. But it is done. 
 A sheriff's or auctioneer's bill finds its way to the walls 
 of God's house ! It is for sale. What ! is God in debt, 
 that his property is seized to pay his debts to man 1 
 It cannot be. Well, who is 1 Mr. A. is in debt. Very 
 well, suppose he is ! But what right has any man to 
 seize upon the house of the living God to pay Mr. A.'s 
 debts 1 That is worse than robbing the church. Rob- 
 bing takes but part, this takes all. But Mr. A. has a 
 mortgage on the house, and his mortgage is his pro- 
 perty. His property in God's house ! But was not 
 this house given to God by the people, and did not the 
 ministers and the elders say, Amen, and confirm the 
 deed of gift to God 1 And who now has a right to 
 nullify this act ! Yes, they did it in appearance, but 
 not in fact, for the house was not theirs' to give. And 
 must all this praying, this solemn consecrating, these 
 hopes of prospective good, go to the winds'? It is even 
 so. The house is sold, because it never was the Lord's. 
 And now the world sees, and the church feels, that 
 their act, in professing to give to God what did not be- 
 long to them to give, is, and must be, viewed in no 
 other light than that of hypocrisy. If that be too hard 
 a name, then call it by a softer. But call it what you 
 will, it is conduct which should disgrace the actors in 
 the matter in the eyes of all men, as it does incur the 
 displeasure of God. Heathenism would blush at adeqd 
 like it. 
 
 Yours, as ever, in the warfare against church 
 debts, W. R. 
 
40 Church Debts, 
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 Another great evil of a church debt is, that it per- 
 verts the gospel ministry* Next in importance to the 
 gift of Jesus Christ, and the influences of the Holy Spi- 
 rit, stands the ministry of reconciliation. It is God's 
 appointed mode to reclaim sinners from the error of 
 their ways, and to bring them back to God* Although 
 this plan may be foolishness in the eyes of the men of 
 this world, it is nevertheless the wisdom of God. For, 
 although God does not confine himself to one mode of 
 operation in the conviction of sinners, His ordinary 
 mode is by the preaching of the gospel. Even the 
 circulation of the Bible itself is never, according to 
 God's plan, to take precedence of preaching the gos- 
 pel. When the Saviour was about to ascend to the 
 throne of the Father, he sent forth his servants to 
 preach the gospel. Ministers are Christ's ambassadors 
 to a revolted world. They act in Christ's stead. And 
 now God, through them, beseeches men to be recon- 
 ciled to Him. They that despise them despise God, 
 whose servants they are. And they that hinder them 
 in their appropriate work are contending against God, 
 and are hindering the work of salvation in the world. 
 No thanks to ministers for preaching the gospel; for 
 wo is to them if they preach it not. Their salvation 
 is intimately connected with their duty of preaching, 
 as the salvation of the people is connected with their 
 duty of hearing. Faith cometh by hearing, and hear- 
 ing by the word of God. But how shall they hear 
 without a preacher ? 
 
 When the Saviour sent down his ascension gifts on 
 the church, we find that he gave them " apostles, pro- 
 phets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, for the per- 
 fecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for 
 the edifying of the body of Christ." This, then, is the 
 work of God's ministers. They have no right, if really 
 called of God to the work, ever to give it up, till he 
 
Calling a Minister. 41 
 
 who gave them their commission shall give them are- 
 lease from their work. And fearful will be the account 
 which those must give who neglect the work of the 
 Lord, to heap up for themselves the treasures or the 
 honors of this world. 
 
 As the work of the ministry is for the perfecting of 
 the saints, and for the edifying of the body of Christ, 
 those churches which receive God's ministers among 
 them, should receive them for the purpose of accom- 
 plishing this work. If they receive them for any other 
 object, or hinder them in their work, He that walketh 
 in the midst of the candlesticks doth know it. The 
 Son of Man hath placed these stars, whom he holds in 
 his right hand, in the midst of the churches, " to give 
 them the light of the knowledge of the glory of God." 
 And is there not a fearful responsibility resting upon 
 those who, in any way, resist the great design of God 
 in this mattjr? My soul trembles for the churches, 
 when I think of the spirit that has seized them in these 
 latter days. Their pride and their worldliness have 
 gotten the advance of their humility; and now they 
 must have ministers (if such can be had) whose labors 
 among them may foster the feelings of their hearts. 
 Hence it is, that when a congregation is about to call 
 a minister of Christ, in a vast multitude of cases, the 
 inquiry is, not so much whether they shall be made 
 perfect in holiness through his ministrations, as whe- 
 ther he can, in their judgment, rear up and perfect 
 that which their pride and worldliness have begun. In 
 the choice of a minister, who, I ask, is consulted by the 
 congregation, and what motives too often influence 
 them in the choice they make? Do they leave this 
 matter wholly in the hands of the Lord of the church? 
 Do they hear the Spirit who speaketh to the churches? 
 and do they hear what He speaketh ? Do they draw 
 nigh to God, and by prayer do they receive the bap- 
 tism of the Holy Ghost, so that they are able to per- 
 ceive the mind of the Spirit of God ? And being thus 
 illumined from on high, do they then hear God's mes- 
 sengers, and, from a knowledge of their own spiritual 
 4 
 
4$ Church Deits. 
 
 case, can they discern that this or that one is the 
 "star" that Jesus designs should shine in the midst of 
 their candlestick? Is the choice of a pastor made by 
 the flock of Christ? Are they for whose salvation the 
 ministry was appointed, and who are to be made perfect 
 in Christ Jesus, the persons who choose their shep- 
 herds to lead them by the still w 7 aters 1 Ah, how sel- 
 dom is it done so I The man of wealth or influence in 
 the world, and without religion, is called upon to de- 
 cide the question, and to say who is to feed the flock 
 of Christ!! His opinion is preferred to that of the 
 child of God, simply and solely because, if his feelings 
 be consulted, his purse will be open to sustain the man 
 called. If this is not preferring gain to godliness tell 
 me what it is? 
 
 But, again. The church is in debt, and how does 
 such a church pray? If Heaven's records were un- 
 rolled, you would find that prayers have been sent up 
 breathing the following spirit: ** O Lord, thou Head of 
 the Church; send us a man after thine own heart — a 
 holy man of God. But Oh ! grant that he may be a po- 
 pular man — a man who shall be able to draw into this 
 church such men of influence and of property as shall 
 enable us to pay oft* our debts; and may they be saved. 
 We ask not such as many of thy churches now pos- 
 sess, and under whose ministry they may be ripening 
 for heaven, for they would not suit us. Oh ! send us 'a 
 man whose eloquence and whose powers of mind shall 
 shake a city like this,' that we, as a church, may be 
 glorified in the eyes of our brethren, and that thine 
 honor may thereby be promoted. Send such an one, 
 and send him speedily. Behold how thy flock is scat- 
 tering to other churches. Our debt is increasing, 
 while our ability to pay is on the decrease. Oh ! save, 
 we beseech thee, this beautiful house from passing in- 
 to the hands of strangers. Save speedily, for thy great 
 name's sake. Amen." 
 
 Did you ever hear a prayer like this ? First, an- 
 swer this question. Did you never hear conversation 
 like this in spirit, and perhaps partly in word ? If you 
 
An Appeal to the Churches, 43 
 
 have not, I have. Let me here speak in God's name 
 to the churches. I do, then, most solemnly protest 
 against this wicked perversion of the ordinance of God. 
 Ye churches of the Saviour, God's ministers are not 
 ordained to the work of collecting funds from your 
 purses, or from the purses of the men of the world, to 
 pay for your pride or worldiihess in erecting houses 
 for the Lord. Why will you transform them from 
 angels of mercy and of salvation to you and your fami- 
 lies, to mere beggars for the silver and the gold of earth, 
 to pay for your pride, and thus save you from a lasting 
 disgrace? Why will you sit in solemn judgment, and 
 pass sentence against God's ministers, because you 
 judge they are not popular enough to accomplish your 
 schemes of grandeur and folly? Why will yon allow 
 the men of this world, " whose god is their belly,*' to 
 decide who shall feed, with spiritual food, the souls of 
 your Christian brethren, and of your children, aye, 
 and your own souls also? Oh! why will you stand 
 in the way of God's ministers, in their efforts to edify 
 the body of Christ, and degrade them to the work of 
 building up piles of brick and mortar, and drive them 
 from their houses, and from the study of God's word, 
 to collect funds to pay for the tinkling cymbals or the 
 tinselled ornaments of your houses of worship 1 Why 
 will ye do it? I beseech you, by the mercies of 
 God, that ye sin no longer against your risen Lord, 
 by throwing upon his servants a work He never gave 
 them to do. If Jesus should come back to earth in 
 humanity, as he will, would you set him to work to 
 garnish the sepulchres of your fathers, and decorate 
 your houses of worship? Why, then, give his minis- 
 ters, "the angels of the churches," this work to do? 
 Oh ! repent of your sins. Do your first works, else 
 Jesus will fight against you with the sword of his 
 mouth, and remove your candlestick out of his place, 
 May the Saviour have mercy upon his churches! 
 
 Yours, in my heart-felt opposition to the sin, the 
 curse of church debts. W, R, 
 
44 Church Debts. 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 In my last letter I endeavored to show you that 
 church debts tended directly to prevent the great object 
 of preaching the gospel, and to lead churches to seek 
 for ministers, not so much to save souls and build them 
 up in the faith, as to help them to pay their debts. I 
 merely remark now, in passing, that this course of the 
 church is exceedingly impolitic, as well as wicked. 
 For, in the first place, ministers, as a class of men, by 
 their very studies and training, are unfitted to engage 
 in the management of the financial affairs of the church, 
 as is necessary in a case like the one contemplated. 
 And, second, if they should do so, they must, as a mat- 
 ter of course, neglect the appropriate duties of their 
 office, in a greater or less degree. And, third, there 
 are multitudes of men in the church, who could attend 
 to the subject a great deal better, and with less sacrifice 
 of time. And there is no reason, that I can conceive 
 of, why they do not attend to it, other than a want of 
 love to God, or a fear that it may interfere, in some 
 way, with their temporal interests. But, fourth, it is 
 absolutely wicked in the sight of God for any congre- 
 gation to turn the minister of Christ aside from his 
 work to supply their lack of service in the matter of 
 collecting dollars and cents. But the supremacy of 
 wickedness in this matter is, their making the preach- 
 ing of God's gospel a mere hook to fish for silver and 
 gold. It is abominable. 
 
 My design, in this letter, is to show you that church 
 debts tend to degrade the ministry of Christ. 
 
 The ministers of Christ are called, by the Saviour 
 himself, " the stars" which he holds in his right hand, 
 and which he has placed in the midst of the churches, 
 to impart to them that light which they receive from 
 him. They are his ascension gifts to the churches. 
 They are his watchmen, placed upon the walls of Zion, 
 who are to hear the word from the mouth of their 
 
The Subject Illustrated. 45 
 
 Lord, and to warn the people from him. They are 
 Christ's ambassadors to treat with men to be recon- 
 ciled to Gr>d. Their work, in the fulfilment of these 
 various offices, is manifold, and yet one. It requires 
 much study, prayer, watchfulness, and zeal, and espe- 
 cially freedom from perplexing and unnecessary cares. 
 Anything, then, which will turn them aside from the 
 appropriate work of their office, must, in the nature of 
 the case, tend to diminish the regard which the 
 ■churches should have for them as God's ministers. It 
 tends, also, to degrade them in the eyes of the men of 
 the world, and thus prevents them from exerting that 
 influence over them, in reference to their salvation, 
 which they should have, in virtue of their office, and 
 which the church, that seeks their good, should desire 
 her ministers to possess. 
 
 But let me illustrate my meaning. Suppose the king 
 should descend from his throne, and turn shoe-bearer, 
 or a mere cooley, (a man who carries burdens on his 
 head in the East;) or let the emperor turn groom ; let 
 the queen turn scullion; let the judge turn tipstaff; let 
 the President turn street-sweeper; or let them indivi- 
 dually rather unite both of these respective offices, and 
 pursue them alternately, as occasion may demand, and 
 who does not see that the dignity of the higher stations 
 must be brought to the level of the other? I am say- 
 ing nothing here as to the moral worth of those who 
 usually fill these different stations in life. They may 
 be all equally good, or, if there be any difference, it 
 may be in favor of those who hold inferior stations. 
 All that I mean to say is, that the dignity of the offices 
 is different. And if the king will turn cooley, or the 
 queen a scullion, the dignified stations of king and queen 
 are necessarily lowered in the estimation of all. Not 
 only so, but the king and queen will also lose that re-* 
 spect of the people which their stations demand. 
 
 Now let us apply this illustration to the ministry. 
 Let the minister descend from the high station where 
 God has plaeed him, and let him engage in the politi- 
 cal discussions or the speculations of the day, and 
 4* 
 
4($ Church Debts. 
 
 what will be the result? Evidently this : he will be 
 put on a level with other politicians and speculators, 
 and whatever motives may urge them forward, they 
 will attribute similar motives to him. The man sinks 
 from the dignity of an ambassador for Christ to the 
 standing of a mere wordy politician. And if his poli- 
 tical sentiments should not agree with those with whom 
 he may converse, or if he should mistake in judgment 
 in political matters, he will lose the credit he ought to 
 have in matters purely religious. They reason thus : 
 If this minister is so illy qualified (in their estimation) 
 to manage in these worldly affairs, he can scarcely be 
 wise in spirituals. The man and the office both sink 
 in the estimation of these men, and of others. 
 
 So it is with any other work that the ministers of 
 Christ may engage in, that does not properly belong to 
 the work of the ministry. Let them, for the time being, 
 lav aside the w 7 ork of the ministry to collect funds, 
 either to foster the pride of the people in building a 
 more costly church than is necessary, or to pay for 
 one that the congregation, in their imprudence, have 
 erected without the means of paying for it, and the ef- 
 fect will be the same ; it degrades the office. The 
 minister is turned aside from his work, and his time 
 is wasted in matters which, in the nature of the case, 
 must be to him exceedingly perplexing and vexing. 
 Take the following facts for the sake of illustration : — 
 A sermon was preached (no matter now when or where) 
 in behalf of the American Board of Missions, a cause 
 which should be dear to every Christian's heart. After 
 the sermon, subscriptions were made on cards. It was 
 made my duty to collect these. I called on Mr. Blank, 
 and presented him his card for $5. He took it, and 
 after looking at it, said with a surly tone, " Well, I 
 suppose I must pay il ; that's the way they're always 
 begging at our church, and they're sure to catch me." 
 He handed me very coolly the pledged $5. I thanked 
 him for Christ's sake, not his. and came away. I had 
 a bow from him, but 1 was not told that I was welcome. 
 Immediately after leaving the counting-house, a young 
 
Modern Requisites in a Minister* 47 
 
 man ran after me, and gave me $10 for the same cause. 
 He said he was not at church yesterday, when the 
 cause was presented, but had heard of it; and lie beg- 
 ged I would accept of the sum offered to aid the 
 cause, and regretted that he had not more to give. 
 What a difference in the spirit of these men ! 
 
 On a certain occasion I called upon a man who is 
 independently rich, and asked him for a donation to a 
 church, after having stated the case to him. He treated 
 me very politely, but the cause was dismissed without 
 a dollar. 
 
 After three unsuccessful attempts, I saw a wealthy 
 man, a communicant in the church, and stated the 
 same case to him; and after all my efforts to convince 
 him of the goodness of the cause — the pressing need in 
 the case — I received, as in the first case, nothing. In 
 cases like this, the minister of Christ is placed at the 
 feet of the members gf the church, and of others, to 
 beg of them to do for God and his cause what their 
 consciences cannot make them do. Such persons 
 (and their name is legion) feel at perfect liberty to re- 
 ject the counsel, and advice, and wishes of those whom 
 they acknowledge as Christ's ministers, especially when 
 they come on errands of this nature. Having treated 
 them once in that manner, it is easy to do it again. 
 Even if the next time they see these ministers they 
 should be in the pulpit. 
 
 In making special efforts to collect funds to pay off 
 the debt of a church, some may and do receive you 
 pleasantly ; but is it so with all ? Why do the 
 churches throw this burden on their ministers. Is it 
 because of the unpleasantness of the work? Is it be- 
 cause it is too small a matter for them to attend to, 
 and it is, therefore, very fit work for the ministers of 
 Christ? Is it because they look upon the work of the 
 ministry as essentially including the work of begging 
 for money ? Whatever may be the motive, one thing 
 is certain — the thing is a sin against God and his 
 church. I know that there are many ministers whose 
 presence in the pulpit is exceedingly unpleasant to many 
 
48 Church Debts. 
 
 of the congregation. These go away, and others, who, 
 for politeness' sake, will stay, often make the remark, 
 41 Well, we must bear another begging sermon to-day." 
 And so they do; but they learn to associate, ever after, 
 the feelings they have on those occasions with those 
 ministers of Christ, so that they are seldom benefited 
 by their ministry. 
 
 " We never can succeed in our church," said cer- 
 tain elders to a minister, who inquired after their spi- 
 ritual prosperity, " we never can succeed, until we get 
 a more popular minister. The people (that is, those 
 who have wealth to pay church debts) will not come 
 in." What is the thing aimed at by such persons? 
 Not the salvation of souls, as the grand work for 
 which they should labor, but the payment of church 
 debts. The feeling is very much as it was in the time 
 of David, when, we are told, that 
 
 " A man was famous and was had 
 In estimation, 
 According as he lifted up 
 His axe thick trees upon.'" 
 
 A man, then, who can bring down a heavy hand 
 upon these forest trees in the church, and cause the 
 silver and the gold to fly from their coffers, as chips 
 under the axe of the woodman, will be had "in esti- 
 mation." Knowledge of the word of God — skill 
 in dividing it — fidelity in warning men to escape from 
 the wrath to come— diligence in visitinsr from house to 
 house — success in gathering in those whom "God hath 
 chosen," viz., the weak, and the base things of the 
 world to confound the things which are mighty, (1 
 Cor. i. 27,) and also faithfulness in directing the inquir- 
 ing sinner to the Lamb of God, or in smoothing the 
 pillow of the dying Christian in his passage to glory — 
 are all as nought, if the minister possess not the one 
 essential requisite, the ability to collect funds for 
 church debts or church purposes. Such a degrade 
 ing view of the work of the ministry, I will venture to 
 affirm, would never have found its way into the minds 
 
They separate Ministers and Churches. 49 
 
 of any of our church members if it had not been for 
 church debts. With such views of the work of the 
 ministry, how can such persons have that respect for 
 the ministers of Christ, their office, and work, which 
 they should possess? It is impossible. Can they pro- 
 fit under the ministry of the word with such feelings? 
 It cannot be. A system of things, then, still continued 
 in the church, which tends to such sad consequences, 
 is a curse of no ordinary magnitude. Shall it be re- 
 moved ? Or shall it continue to blast the church for 
 generations to come? 
 
 In my next letter, I shall turn your thoughts to the 
 effects of church debts in unsettling ministers. 
 
 I remain, as ever, yours in the warfare against 
 church debts. W. II. 
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 Lv the present letter, I wish to turn your attention 
 to another enormous evil of church debts, viz.: the 
 influence it has in separating ministers from their con- 
 gregations. 
 
 There was a time when the installation of a minis- 
 ter over a people meant something. The subject in- 
 terested not only the minister himself, and the congre- 
 gation of which he was to become the pastor, but the 
 churches generally felt a deep interest in the matter. 
 The relationship was something like the marriage 
 bond — for life. It was not to be dissolved by every 
 breeze of dissatisfaction that might spring up in any 
 breast. It was a sacred tie. The people felt that the 
 minister was theirs. He was the " star" that the Head 
 of the Church had placed in the midst of that congre- 
 gation. And the minister felt that unto them he was 
 to break the brend of life, and that his duty was to 
 .edify the flock of Christ, and to train them up for hea- 
 ven. His counsels were heeded. The parents paid 
 
&0 Church Debts. 
 
 him reverence, and the children learned to respect 
 and love him. He was the head of the spiritual flock, 
 and among them could he number many of his spiri- 
 tual children. While he labored for their spiritual 
 good, they were not unmindful of his temporal wants. 
 They had promised him, not only " a competent world- 
 ly maintenance," but also to give him " whatever else 
 they might see needful for the honor of religion, and 
 his comfort among them." The first they paid him 
 punctually; and as to the " whatever else" — his libra- 
 ry, his table, and the wardrobe of the family, bore 
 ample testimony that their eyes were open to see what 
 was for the honor of religion, and for his comfort 
 among them. These things tended greatly to unite 
 the hearts of the pastor and his flock together, so that 
 they felt that they were indeed as one family, and that 
 their interest and object were one. A dissolution of 
 the pastoral relationship between such a pastor and 
 his flock was witnessed only when the Great Head of 
 the Church laid him aside from his labors here, or 
 called him to his reward on high. 
 
 Now, if you will look into the secret of these long 
 and tender unions, you will find, if I mistake not, that 
 they are intimately connected with the financial affairs 
 of the church. The house in which they worshipped 
 their God, and the God of their fathers, was the Lord's 
 house, and not man's. There was no debt upon it; 
 or, if there was, it was becoming less and less every 
 year, under the influence of a feeling that was deter- 
 mined, in all things, to act honestly. The people were 
 honest towards God, and hence they were honest to- 
 wards his servant. It was only when the ancient 
 Jews refused to bring their promised tithes into the 
 storehouse of the Lord, that their priests were com- 
 pelled to abandon the service of the temple, and flee 
 to the fields for a support. And it is owing to the 
 same cause, in the vast majority of cases, that minis- 
 ters are now compelled to abandon fields of labors, 
 where much fruit might be gathered. If a people are 
 not honest towards God, they cannot be towards the 
 
A Dialogue in Point, 51 
 
 shepherd God has placed over them. If they have 
 not religion enough to erect such a house as their ne- 
 cessities require, and their means can pay for, they 
 would not be content with Paul or Apollos as their 
 pastor. 
 
 It would be interesting to trace out the origin of that 
 disaffection, or whatever else it may be, that ends in the 
 dismissal of a pastor from his flock. As a general thing, 
 he would not leave them, if his situation was rendered 
 comfortable among them. But, by degrees, he finds 
 his position becoming more and more unpleasant. His 
 temporal affairs are embarrassed. Promises on which 
 he relied have not been fulfilled. His mind is harassed 
 in consequence of it. His studies are interrupted. He 
 cannot bring a mind "free from worldly cares and 
 avocations" to investigate the word of God, so as to 
 feed his flock on the Sabbath, and to give to saint and 
 to sinner a portion in due season. The effect is mani- 
 fest. The people see it; nor are they slow to speak 
 of it. 
 
 "Do you think our minister was as interesting to- 
 day as usual?' said Mr. A. to his brother B., as they 
 were returning from church one fine Sabbath day, 
 after hearing a sermon on the words, " Faith without 
 works is dead." " I 'thought not," said Mr. B., " but 
 I did not like to say so." " But I will," says Mrs. C., 
 who was in company with them ; " I could preach as 
 good a sermon as that myself, and I don't profess to 
 be a minister." Encouraged by the example of 
 others, Miss D., one of the pert beauties of the con- 
 gregation, gave her head one of those significant 
 tosses for which she is noted, and observed, " The 
 sermon was so dull and prosing, that (I'm ashamed to 
 say it) I really fell asleep." The little children said 
 they could not understand the sermon, and so they 
 spent their time in throwing paper balls at one an- 
 other. Ere long they caught up with elders E. and 
 F., who were walking soberly along, and talking about 
 the state of things in the church. And after some 
 conversation, Mr. A. ventured to say something about 
 
52 Church Debts. 
 
 the sermon. The minister was dull — there was in the 
 sermon nothing new said, and nothing old well said — 
 such preaching would not build up a church, &c. 
 " Well, friend A., I suppose that there is some truth 
 in what you say. But you know our minister can 
 preach well." 
 
 " I believe he can ; but I don't think that he preaches 
 even as well as he used to do. There must be some 
 reason for it, I suppose." 
 
 " There certainly is ; and elder F. and I have been 
 trying to find out the cause of it, and we think we have 
 discovered it in the Old Testament." 
 
 " Well, truly, elder E., you have gone far enough 
 back for the cause," said Mr. A., laughing at the 
 thought. " But what do you mean ? You must ex- 
 plain yourself." 
 
 " I will do so. Elder F. and I both think that our 
 pastor has been treated something like the Israelites 
 were treated by Pharaoh and his task-masters." 
 
 " I hope you don't mean to say that I am opposed 
 to our pastor! I am always at church when my en- 
 gagements will permit me to attend. I do not under- 
 stand you." 
 
 " Have patience, and you will. You remember that 
 when Pharaoh disobeyed the voice of the Lord by 
 Moses, and refused to let Israel go free, that he began 
 to oppress the people more and more. He told his 
 task-masters not to give the people straw to make 
 brick, but to let them go and gather straw for them- 
 selves. He required them to make as many bricks 
 daily as they had done before, when the straw was 
 furnished to their hand. ' So the people were scat- 
 tered abroad throughout the land of Egypt, to gather 
 stubble instead of straw.' The task-masters urged 
 them on, saying, 'fulfil your daily tasks.' The people 
 could not do it. The task-masters were beaten. The 
 officers of Pharaoh tried to reason the case with him, 
 and reminded him of the fact that the people had no 
 straw. Still he would not diminish any of the task, 
 but demanded the same as before. The people then 
 
A Dialogue in Point. 
 
 saw it was an * evil case* with them. And th 
 in their deep distress, till God appeared for t\ 
 live ranee." 
 
 " That is all very true, elder E. ; but what hi ..us 
 to do with our minister's sermon this morning?' 
 
 "You will hear, only attend. You remember what 
 an excellent man our former minister was, and how 
 useful he is now in his new congregation. You know 
 we all loved him, and how mortified we were when 
 he mentioned to the Presbytery, that the only reason 
 for his leaving us was a want of support." 
 
 " I know it ; but we could not help that. You know 
 that the debt upon our church was about $12,000, and 
 the interest (which must be paid, whoever may want) 
 was about $720, so that we were not able to give him 
 a proper support. Indeed, when I think of it now, I 
 wonder how he could stay as long with us as he did." 
 
 "It is true, our debt was very large for us then, 
 and though it is reduced a little, still it is too burden- 
 some for us to bear it very long. But I have thought, 
 if the people had done what they could, we might have 
 kept him. There are a number of the members of the 
 church who gave nothing to his support. There are 
 Miss Love-self, and Miss Small-waist, and her cousin, 
 Miss Follow-fashion, and a number of young men, 
 who gave nothing at all. And there are Mr. Starch, 
 Mr. Prim, and Mr. Lady-man, who only subscribed a 
 dollar or two, and they did not pay all of that. And 
 there are others who acted in the same way. I am 
 afraid we are pursuing the same course towards our 
 present pastor, and the Lord will remove him from us 
 as He has done our former one. I think, Mr. A., there 
 are a good many in the church like yourself, (for the 
 truth had better come out at once;) who find fault 
 with the minister because he don't make as good brick 
 as usual, and yet you don't give him the straw that he 
 needs. You make him run about to gather stubble, and 
 then blame him because he has not made as many 
 brick as formerly, and because he uses stubble in them 
 instead of straw. And now, Mr. A., let me ask you, 
 5 
 
64 Church Debts. 
 
 are you not a year in arrears with your pew-rent T 
 You have had fine crops, and your orchards are load- 
 ed with fruit. Have you thought of your minister's 
 wants in the midst of your abundance 1 x\nd, Mr. B., 
 you have succeeded in your business this year very 
 well; and don't you think that you might have added 
 to his comfort considerably, by some tokens of your 
 favor, without diminishing your own comforts in the 
 least degree V 
 
 " Wei!-, I suppose I might, but I never thought of 
 
 " That is very probable ; but, you may rely upon it, 
 the poor Israelite thought of the straw, when he had 
 to gather the stubble, and to make the brick." 
 
 " I wish we were out of debt, and then we could 
 support our pastor very easily. But it is very discour- 
 aging, especially when the burden falls upon a few." 
 
 " That is true, brother B. ; and now if you will do 
 what you can, and won't expect our pastor to preach 
 labored discourses, without giving him the time and 
 the means to prepare them — if you wilt be punctual 
 in your attendance on the means of grace, and prompt 
 in the payment of all dues to the church, and will unite 
 with us in prayer and effort to sustain the church, and 
 to pay off this debt, I think we can succeed in keeping 
 our minister, and the church, too, from being sold by 
 the auctioneer." 
 
 Here the company had to separate, and the conver- 
 sation stopped. 
 
 Now, in thinking on this conversation, and the situ- 
 ation of ministers in former days, I have been led to 
 think, that one grand reason why the pastor and the 
 people loved each other so much, was the fact, that 
 there was no church debt to be a source of dissatis- 
 faction. The people called the minister to preach 
 Christ to them. The minister came to do so, and in 
 that work he was sustained. But now, a minister fs 
 called for many reasons besides preaching the gospel. 
 He is called to fill a house greatly in debt. Few men 
 can do that. He is called " to shake a city." He is 
 
A Plan Proposed. 55 
 
 called to keep up the dignity of the congregation. He 
 is called to harmonize a people who have quarrelled 
 about a church debt. He is called to do his own work, 
 and the work of the people; and the Presbytery put 
 him there to do it ! As he cant't do it, the Presbytery 
 are called together again to put him out of his office, 
 and to break a bond which they ratified by solemn 
 acts and by prayer. In looking at the causes of this 
 growing evil, I am disposed to think that no small 
 amount of the sin lies on the shoulders of ministers, 
 and hence it is that God chastens them in the thing in 
 which they have sinned. Have they not encouraged 
 people to build a fine church, when they knew that 
 they could not pay for it? Have not some been gra- 
 tified in being pastors of fine new churches, in debt? 
 Have they not installed their brethren as pastors over 
 churches which were in debt, and under the curse, and 
 when they had abundant reason to believe that they 
 could not succeed ? Have they not dismissed pastors 
 because of the debt of the churches? and have they 
 not, in the face of this fact, and perhaps at the same 
 meeting, made preparations to throw another brother 
 into the same furnace? Has not the fear which min- 
 isters have had, to openly and sternly rebuke the pride 
 of the people, tended to increase the evil under which 
 they groan? T believe it. And until ministers will 
 refuse to be settled over churches in debt, or to place 
 their brethren over them, the evil will continue. Let 
 the Presbyteries take this stand, and God will bless 
 them. Let the oldest and greatest sinners in our midst 
 repent first, and let others follow. Let the Presbytery 
 of Philadelphia (the mother of us all) repent of their 
 sin, and pay off honorably the debt of their churches, 
 {for they have the ability to do both,) and let others, 
 younger in age, but equal in crime in this respect, 
 follow her example ; and the solemn mockery of 
 installing ministers only to dismiss them again, and 
 the perpetual lamentation of barren ordinances will be 
 heard of in our midst no more forever. The work of 
 reform will go through the land, and the Holy Spirit 
 
56 Church Debts. 
 
 will descend and rest upon the churches. Who will 
 lead the way ? 
 
 Yours, sincerely, in the warfare against church 
 debts. W. R. 
 
 LETTER XL 
 
 There is one thought more which I wish to present, 
 before I speak of the remedy for the evil, viz.: 
 
 The blighting influence which church debts have upon 
 the cause of missions. 
 
 When we take up the New Testament, and inquire 
 into the nature of this dispensation, we find it stated 
 by the Apostle in the following language : — " God at 
 the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a 
 people for His name." The object, then, is to gather 
 out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and na- 
 tion, a church for the Redeemer. The instrumentality 
 to be used in this work is the preaching of the gospel. 
 Hence, the command of the Saviour is, " Go, ye, into 
 all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." 
 This is the imperious duty of the church. Nothing 
 should be allowed to hinder her in performing it. The 
 apostles felt that the preaching of the gospel was the 
 work to which they were called, and therefore they 
 allowed nothing to hinder them in the performance of 
 their duty. The church also felt that they were to be 
 coworkers with them in gathering in the elect church ; 
 and hence it is, that when they were scattered abroad 
 by persecution, "they went everywhere preaching the 
 word." 
 
 As this was the grand object of their organization 
 as a church, they kept it constantly in view. Their 
 labors ceased only with their lives. Their money, 
 time, talents, influence, and lives were devoted to the 
 work of the Lord. They lived for God, and not for 
 
Influence on Missions. 57 
 
 themselves. And having once felt that their lives 
 were the Lord's, their money became valuable, only 
 as it aided them to carry forward the great commis- 
 sion of their Saviour. They never lost sight of the 
 fact, that the full establishment of the kingdom of the 
 Redeemer was the end to be kept in view, and that 
 the preaching of the gospel u in all the world, for a 
 witness unto all nations," was essentially necessary to 
 the accomplishing of that end. Hence they labored 
 and prayed for the time to come when the world 
 should be blessed with universal peace, and when 
 " the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the 
 kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the 
 people of the saints of the Most High." 
 
 With such views, self was a little matter in their 
 eyes. They kept their eyes fixed upon the return of 
 their Lord, and as that could not take place till the 
 gospel should be preached unto all nations, we see at 
 once the secret of their unremitting zeal in preaching 
 the gospel. No wonder, then, that the gospel was car- 
 ried as far as the Pillar of Hercules on the west, and 
 to the Ganges on the east, before the last apostle was 
 dead. And if the same spirit which animated the 
 apostles had continued for one hundred years longer, 
 the Man of Sin had never risen up to curse the church 
 and the world. To build large and costly churches, 
 and go in debt for them, and then compel themselves 
 to pay an annual tax in the shape of interest money — 
 thereby starving their pastors, crippling their exer- 
 tions, or preventing them from sending forth mission- 
 aries to preach the gospel, taking nothing of the Gen- 
 tiles — was a course of conduct which never entered 
 their minds. It would have been the consummation 
 of folly in their eyes, as it should be in ours. It would 
 have been a complete demonstration of their lack of 
 practical wisdom, consistency, and of a proper sense 
 of religious duty. 
 
 Let us look at this for a moment. The apostles 
 professed their faith in the speedy return of their Lord. 
 They were looking for that event. They declared that 
 
 a* 
 
58 Church Debts. 
 
 the preaching of the gospel unto all nations was an 
 essential prerequisite to that event. Now, if in the face 
 of these confessions, instead of using their money for 
 the purpose of sending the living preacher to the ends 
 of the earth, they had used it to gratify their pride in 
 building palaces for themselves, or in erecting costly 
 churches, and in paying the interest of the debts re- 
 maining upon them, it would have manifested such a 
 total want of consistent conduct, as to prove that their 
 faith in this matter stood not in deeds, but in words. 
 But they did not act so. They manifested their faith 
 by their works. After the apostles were dead, a new 
 generation sprang up, who had not the spirit of their 
 fathers. These began to feel that their own comfort 
 and ease were \he first things to be attended to, and 
 that the command of the Lord was a secondary mat- 
 ter. Their own wants, comforts, luxuries, and pride 
 made such heavy drafts upon their purses, that there 
 was but little left to send the gospel abroad, and thus 
 obey the command of their ascended Lord. Well, 
 what has been the result of this sad experiment? Let 
 the dark ages and the reign of Popery give the answer. 
 A Reformation took place. But where now is the spi- 
 rit of the reformers? It is found on the page of his- 
 tory, but not in the heart of the church. 
 
 But is the duty of sending the gospel to the ends of 
 the earth less binding upon us now than upon the apos- 
 tles, or upon the reformers? Certainly not. The great 
 work of the church is to preach Christ, and him cruci- 
 fied, to the ends of the earth. She has all the means, 
 so far as wealth is concerned, to accomplish that ob- 
 ject. But how does the church, as such, feel upon this 
 subject? If we are lo judge from the facts in the case, 
 we must come to the conclusion, that, whatever the 
 church has to do, her work is not to hasten the coming 
 of her Lord, by first carrying the gospel to the nations 
 of the earth. If she felt as she ought, she could not 
 act as she does. The church pays more to gratify 
 her pride, and for things absolutely injurious to her 
 spiritual growth, than she does to send the gospel to 
 
How Lhey hinder Missions. 59 
 
 the heathen. You may take the churches of this city 
 for a specimen, if you choose, and what is the result I 
 One church, you will find, has 
 
 A debt of $22,000, and pays $1,320 interest. 
 Another, 20,000, ** 1,200 " 
 Another, 17,0U0, " 1,020 " 
 Another, 11,000, " 660 " 
 Another, 10,000, " 600 " 
 
 $80,000 $4,800 
 
 Now, here are five churches, with a debt of $80,000 
 resting upon them, and which pay an annual interest 
 of $4,800 ! ! If you had the debts of all the churches 
 in this city presented to your view at a glance, it 
 would fill you with utter astonishment. But let this 
 suffice for the present. Now, what a handsome sum 
 is here from five churches, that ought to flow into the 
 treasury of the Lord, to prepare the world for the full 
 establishment of His kingdom. 
 
 And if you will add this to the sum they now actu- 
 ally give while under such a heavy curse, and then 
 add to it the additional sum they might give if the 
 curse were removed, you can readily perceive how 
 large an amount of the Lord's money is kept back 
 from accomplishing the work he designs by it. And 
 you can see how easily the church could more than 
 double, yea, quadruple, her contributions every year, 
 and how rapidly she might hasten on the glory of the 
 latter day. And why all this debt? I answer, it is 
 the legitimate fruit of pride and covetousness. There 
 is no manner of use for its existence. The thing is a 
 sin against God. It shows that the church of the Sa- 
 viour has lost the spirit of her Lord, and of his holy 
 apostles. Jesus and his disciples never could have 
 acted as the church now acts. And no church now 
 can go in debt that possesses the true spirit of her Lord. 
 Yea, more, the church that sits still under the curse of 
 a church debt — that has not repented of her sin — and 
 is not now exerting herself to throw off this body of 
 sin and death, does not possess the true apostolic spirit. 
 
60 Church Jjebts. 
 
 We talk of revivals, and pray for them while under 
 the curse of church debts. But what ground have we 
 to hope for the descent of the Holy Spirit while we 
 withhold from God and his cause his rightful due? 
 And if God does grant some few drops of mercy, what 
 are the converts good for? They may be saved, but 
 they are of necessity a puny race. The stream can 
 not rise higher than the fountain. And converts brought 
 into the churches that are thus under the displeasure of 
 God, will soon sink down to the same level of those 
 who surround them. 
 
 There is one fact, in connection with this subject, 
 that must strike every observer; it is, the double influ- 
 ence of the curse of church debts upon the cause of 
 foreign missions. And, 1st. It robs the heathen of all 
 that money which is taken to build more costly 
 churches than is needful, and also of the sum that is 
 annually expended for the payment of interest. And, 
 2d. It forms a stereotyped excuse for not giving to 
 send the gospel to the heathen, and to aid the cause 
 of Christ at home. When the call comes loud from 
 the distressed, and from those who have no light, but 
 are perishing for lack of vision, the churches say : 
 " We are sorry we cannot help you ; but we have a 
 large debt upon us, and it is just as much as we can 
 do to bear up under that." And hence the cause is 
 dismissed. But, it is a mere excuse, for they neither 
 give as they ought, nor do they try to pay off the debt 
 of the church. The effect upon the churches them- 
 selves is most sad. How often are they compelled to 
 part with a minister who is doing good in their midst, 
 because of their debt ! Such conduct is about as com- 
 mon sense-like as the conduct of some young people, 
 who have just got married, and who wish to make a 
 show in the world before they are able to do it. They 
 spend so much in fine clothes and in fine furniture, that 
 they have nothing left. They have bought the dishes 
 for the table, but there is nothing to put in them. 
 
 But one thought more before I conclude. My firm 
 belief is, that church debts is one of the deep-laid 
 
How tkey hinder Missions, 61 
 
 schemes of Satan to hinder the progress of the gospel, 
 and the coming of the kingdom of Christ. I will ex- 
 plain my views on this point. Satan has had the 
 usurped possession of this world for nearly six thou- 
 sand years. He knows that his time is short, and that 
 ere long the kingdoms of this world must become the 
 kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ. He also knows 
 that the gospel must be preached in all the world, for 
 a witness unto all nations, before that event can take 
 place. If, then, he can prevent the preaching of the 
 gospel among all nations, and the fulfilment of this 
 part of the church's duty, he still will hold the sway 
 over the earth. Hence it is, that in Christian lands, 
 he is endeavoring to keep the Bible from the youth, 
 so that they may be educated without the princi- 
 ples of the gospel. This he is accomplishing through 
 the aid of the Papal power. And as to heathen lands, 
 he is keeping them from being blessed by the light of 
 the gospel, by diverting the Lord's money from the 
 missionary work to the building of splendid and costly 
 churches at home — paying interest on church debts — 
 building palaces for ourselves— dressing extravagantly 
 — and in every variety of way that he can to keep the 
 gospel from the heathen. Thus it is that Satan is us- 
 ing the church and the men of the world (they being 
 unconscious of the fact) to aid him in keeping the pos- 
 session of the earth. Oh ! when will the people of 
 God awake to a sense of their duty in this matter? I 
 am aware that this thought will strike a certain class 
 of readers as a mere speculation. But I know also 
 that there is another class, who, with the prophetic 
 page open before them, will see and understand that 
 this is the truth. Look at it. The church of the Lord 
 squander away more of the Lord's money in pride 
 and extravagance on their church establishments,than 
 they give to the cause of missions; yea, more than is 
 sufficient to evangelize the whole world: and all this 
 for the glory of God ! They are deceived by Satan. 
 It is a plan of the adversary. And it is the more dif- 
 ficult to convince the church of her error and sin in 
 
62 Church Debts. 
 
 this particular, because she believes that she is, in the 
 course she is pursuing, doing God's service. Strange 
 infatuation ! But so it is. May the Saviour have 
 mercy on his church I 
 
 Yours, as ever, in the war against church debts. 
 
 W. R. 
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 A minister, who resides in the country, met me in 
 the street, a short time ago, and, in the course of our 
 conversation, introduced the subject of church debts. 
 " I am glad," said he, " that you have spoken so plain- 
 ly on this subject. Go on. The churches ought to 
 hear the truth on this point. But it will do them no 
 good. They will not do their duty. Still, they ought 
 to hear the truth, and I hope you will continue to tell 
 it to them. Go on in your work." I thanked him for 
 the interest he took in my effort to expose the sin of 
 the church in this matter, and also for the cool en- 
 couragement he gave me continue my efforts. And 
 as he gave me a hearty shake of the hand in parting, 
 I really did feel encouraged to say something more, 
 having this consolation, at least, that the truth must 
 ultimately prevail. It may be that the churches have 
 fallen into a sleep so deep, that nothing but the coming 
 of the Son of Man can wake them up. Well, if we 
 cannot awaken Christians to a sense of their duty, per- 
 haps we may aid in keeping their consciences some- 
 what uneasy. 
 
 I hope that the prediction of this good brother may 
 not be realized. But if many of the members of our 
 churches possess the spirit of one with whom I lately 
 conversed, it may be so. He remarked that " the 
 church of which he was a member, was in debt 
 810,000, and that they paid annually 8600 interest. 
 He hoped that the church would pay off 82,000 of this 
 amount, and allow the balance to remain." 
 
Their Remedy. 68 
 
 But why not pay off the whole amount? You are 
 able to do it? "I know it," he replied. " But if we 
 should pay off that debt, our treasury would soon be 
 full, and we should not know what to do with the 
 money. The first thing, then, would be to raise the 
 minister's salary, and I am not in favor of giving 
 ministers so much money." 
 
 Very well, if your minister is well supported, there 
 are many others who are laboring faithfully for their 
 Master, and have to contend with many pecuniary 
 difficulties. You might aid them, or you might sus- 
 tain a minister entirely, in many parts of our country, 
 upon the amount you pay away as interest." 
 
 " I know that; but our people won't do it." 
 
 What do you think, reader, of such a spirit as this? 
 Is it really so, that God's people are more willing to 
 pay their hundreds and their thousands, in the shape 
 of interest, to gratify their pride, than to erect plain 
 and suitable churches, and pay for them, and sustain 
 the ministers of the Lord, who are laboring for the 
 salvation of men? Sad times are these on which we 
 have fallen ! 
 
 After what has been said on the subject, I will now 
 suggest 
 
 A Remedy for Church Debts. 
 
 1. The first thing to be done is, to prevent any fur- 
 ther increase of the evil. If the churches which are 
 now involved in debt should be relieved, and if nothing 
 be done to stop this iniquitous system of building 
 churches without paying for them, we shall make but 
 slow progress in this work of reform. It certainly 
 would not show much wisdom in the friends of tem- 
 perance, if they should spend all their energies in trying 
 to reform drunkards, without aiming to prevent another 
 generation of them from rising up to be a scourge 
 and a curse to society. The young must be kept so- 
 ber, or they will become drunkards. So it is with 
 church debts. If we pay off the existing debts of the 
 
64 Church l)ebts. 
 
 churches, and still countenance the sin of building new 
 churches without paying for them, we shall soon have 
 the same evil to mourn over that we now have. The 
 practice must be resolutely frowned upon by every 
 lover of the Church of Christ. Let no church be 
 erected through vain glory or party spirit, or to grati- 
 fy the pride or feelings of a few. But let them be 
 erected only when and where they are needed. And 
 let them be paid for before ever a Christian minister 
 shall, in the name of the people, stand up in their pre- 
 sence and dedicate to Cod that which they know does 
 not belong to them. This evil may easily be prevented* 
 It is in the power of the ministers to do it at once. Let 
 them resolve that they will not dedicate a church to God 
 that is in debt, and that they will not destroy the comfort 
 and peace of a brother, and hinder his usefulness, by 
 placing him over a church that is in debt, and soon the 
 evil complained of will be cured. If this were done, we 
 should seldom hear of ministers leaving their people 
 for want of a support. The members of the churches 
 would then understand what they must do to have a 
 minister of Christ placed over them ; and when they 
 had him, they would be free to labor for the salvation 
 of souls, without the continued annoyance of a debt. 
 I might ask you now to look at the churches in this 
 city, and to tell me what it is which perplexes the 
 minds of the officers of the churches. It is their debt. 
 What breaks in upon the studies and pastoral duties of 
 the settled pastors? The church debt. What turns 
 off the minds of the elders and leading men of the 
 church from the great work of saving souls ? It is 
 their church debt. What is it that leads the people to 
 lessen the salary of their ministers, or to fix it at the 
 lowest possible rate, or to be always dilatory in pay- 
 ing their minister, so that he is often pressed beyond 
 measure for the mere necessaries of life? It is the 
 church debt. What is that brings down the curse of 
 God upon the churches throughout our land? It is 
 the awful fact that they are robbing God of his due. 
 Do you ask, wherein do they rob him? I answer, 
 
An Interesting Fact. 65 
 
 " In tithes and offerings." It surely is not the time for 
 those who call themselves the stewards of God, to be 
 dwelling in their ceiled houses, while the house of God 
 remains unfinished or in debt. May the churches 
 have grace to " consider their ways," and repent of 
 this great evil, that the blessing of God may rest upon 
 them ! 
 
 In a former letter I mentioned the interesting fact 
 that in Bombay the Hindoos have upwards of four 
 hundred temples for a population of about 200,000, 
 that is, one temple for every five hundred of the peo- 
 ple, and that they are all out of debt. Some of those 
 temples have cost not less than 50,000 dollars, and 
 some of them 100,000 dollars! 
 
 At a missionary meeting, held on New Year's day 
 in the Rev. Mr. Gillette's church, I asked the Rev. Mr. 
 Kincaid whether any of the temples or pagodas in 
 Burmah were in debt. He replied, Not one. Many 
 of these temples have been erected at a vast expense, 
 and not a few of them by individuals. 
 
 It appears, then, to be a dictate of nature, and of 
 natural and revealed religion, that God should be wor- 
 shipped in houses not in debt. The heathen act up to 
 the light they have on this subject. It is left for Chris- 
 tian people, in the nineteenth century, to act in a man- 
 ner so unworthy of themselves, and so totally incon- 
 sistent with the profession they have made. It is well 
 the heathen do not know what the conduct of Chris- 
 tians is in this respect, else they would, I fear, despise 
 us as much as they do those who make their god and 
 then eat him. As we are sending to the heathen mis- 
 sionaries to convert them to Christianity, would it not 
 be well to ask them to send missionaries to Christian 
 lands to convert the people from the sin of professing 
 to give to God houses which belong not to them, and 
 which the sheriff may seize at any time for debt ! 
 
 Yours, as ever, W. R. 
 
66 Church Debts. 
 
 LETTER XIIL 
 
 In my last letter, I showed you what we must do 
 to prevent an increase of the evil of church debts. I 
 will now turn your attention, 
 
 2dly. To the remedy for the present existing evil. 
 It is our duty, as honest men, and as Christians, to pay 
 the debts which are now upon the houses devoted to 
 the service of God. 
 
 This can be done, 1st, immediately, by Christians 
 taking some of the Lord's money, which they, as the 
 stewards of God, have laid by for their own* use, and 
 with it paying oft" the debts upon the houses in which 
 they worship their Redeemer* 
 
 Or, 2d, it can be done in a short time, by a number 
 of Christians, who are not needed in the larger and 
 wealthier churches, uniting their contributions, efforts, 
 and prayers with those who are laboring in the feebler 
 churches. In this manner they will obey the injunc- 
 tion of the apostle, who said, " I have showed you all 
 things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the 
 weak;" and to remember the words of the Lord Je- 
 sus, when He said, " It is more blessed to give than to 
 receive*" 
 
 Permit me now to turn your attention to the first of 
 these plans, viz. : the immediate payment of the debts 
 now upon the churches. 
 
 I remark, first, that it can be done* The debt upon 
 the churches in this city, under the care of the Third 
 and Fourth Presbyteries, is about $100,000, which, at 
 the rate of six per cent., draws out of the churches 
 the nett sum of about $6,000 per annum, in the shape 
 of interest ; or rather, I should say, as a tax for pride 
 and covetousness. The debt upon the churches under 
 the care of the First and Second Presbyteries is by no 
 means small. It remains to be seen whether one of 
 their churches will not yet pass into the hands of the 
 
Wealth of Christians. 67 
 
 Romanists for debt.* The Methodist, Baptist, and 
 Episcopal churches are large stockholders in the curse 
 of church debts. The amount of debt upon all these 
 churches is not far from 8200,000 more, which will 
 be $12,000 more of interest. Here, then, we have 
 $18,000, which the churches of this city are paying 
 annually, as interest upon their church debts. Quite 
 enough to support thirty ministers in country charges, 
 at $600 each ; or enough to send out and support 
 twenty missionaries among the heathen. And all this 
 is spent to gratify a foolish pride. I doubt whether 
 the churches in this city give half as much annually to 
 obey the last command of their ascended Lord, to 
 carry the gospel to the heathen, as they do to gratify 
 themselves in the matter of church adorning, and in 
 paying the interest on church debts. No marvel that 
 six hundred millions of the heathen are still without 
 the gospel, since this is the spirit of the church in the 
 nineteenth century. Let us weep that it is so, and 
 pray that it may not remain so. 
 
 Notwithstanding the great debt that presses upon 
 the church, it could be paid immediately, because the 
 people of God are able to do it. I speak advisedly, 
 when I say they are able to do it. Look at the im- 
 mense wealth that is in this city. Now ask, into 
 whose hands has God entrusted all this wealth? You 
 will find that a very large proportion of it is in the 
 hands of those who are the avowed friends and fol- 
 lowers of Him who became poor for our sakes. A large 
 portion of the remainder is held by those who, although 
 not the professed followers of Christ, are the decided 
 friends of Christianity — are regular in their attend- 
 ance on the means of grace, and are ready to con- 
 tribute to the support of every benevolent enterprise. 
 The wealth of this city is not held by the misanthrope 
 and the foe of the Bible. If the people of God do not 
 now possess as much of their Lord's money as is 
 needed to carryforward his work, there is still enough 
 
 * They now have it, 
 
Church Debts. 
 
 in the hands of others to do it, which they may obtain. 
 For, as " the earth is the Lord's, and the fullness there- 
 of," as "the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just," 
 and as the promise is, " ask, and ye shall receive," the 
 amount may be had, if the proper means be used. 
 There is money enough, and more than enough, in 
 the hands of Christians, to release the houses of their 
 God from the pressure of mortgages and judgment- 
 bonds, which now weigh them down. The pewholders 
 in one congregation alone, in this city, hold property 
 to the amount of, at least, thirty millions of dollars! 
 What a trust is this ! And what a fearful responsibili- 
 ty rests upon those who are the stewards of so much of 
 God's money. There are individual Christians among 
 us who hold property from the value of one hundred 
 thousand up to two million of dollars. A gentle- 
 man, who certainly has the means of knowing facts 
 like the following, and who is not apt to make ground- 
 less statements, recently informed me that the Saviour 
 has entrusted in the hands of one of his people in this 
 city, and which he now holds, more money than has 
 been received into the treasury of the American Board 
 of Commissioners for Foreign Missions since the year 
 1812 — say, some two and a half or three millions of 
 dollars! There are at least two hundred and fifty 
 thousand communicants in the Presbyterian Church 
 in this country. Each of these could, on an average, 
 give five dollars per annum, towards paying off the 
 debt of the Lord's house. Yes, they might do it easily, 
 and not lose a single meal by the gift. 
 
 Now, take what view of this subject you choose, 
 still, I think, you will agree with me in the belief, that 
 the people of God have enough of their Lord's money 
 in their hands to pay off all the debt that now rests 
 upon the churches dedicated to his service. The work 
 can be done. If the work can be done, it may be 
 asked, why is it not done? I reply, that many Chris- 
 tians have not seriously thought of paying off' the debts 
 of their churches; and yet they would cheerfully aid, 
 if any one would lead the way. There may be some 
 
The Remedy. 69 
 
 who do not wish to do it, and the reason is, they ima- 
 gine they can make more money for themselves by the 
 operation. I will explain myself. Suppose Mr. A. has 
 the sum of $5,000, which he chooses to call his own. 
 He is a member of a church that is in debt some $8,000 
 or $10,000, and is now called on to aid in paying off 
 the debt. He reasons thus: I can give $1,000, and 
 so can others ; but, as the interest is only six per cent., 
 if I keep my thousand dollars, and trade with it, I can 
 make ten, twenty, or even thirty per cent, profit out 
 of it. I will, therefore, cheerfully pay my portion of 
 the interest as it becomes due. 1 will trade with my 
 Lord's money, and whatever is over the six per cent., 
 which I must pay, as my share of the interest money, 
 I will put in my own pocket. And when 1 am dead, 
 the money may go to pay the debt. 
 
 There may be some who feel and act in this way, 
 and it is probable that they think they act wisely. 
 Perhaps they do for this world, but not for the next. 
 Is this the proper course for those to pursue who are 
 Che Lord's stewards? Judge ye. 
 
 Yours, as ever, in the war against church debts. 
 
 W. R. 
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 The debts upon our churches can be paid. There 
 is money enough in the hands of Christians, which 
 belongs to their Lord, to pay off all the debts which 
 are now upon the houses dedicated to His service. 
 The simple question is, Will they do it? A brother 
 in the ministry says, No. It may be so. It may be 
 that the people of God do not possess enough of the 
 spirit of their Lord, to do their duty in this respect. 
 The time, however, will come, when it will be as dis- 
 reputable for a congregation to be in debt for the 
 6* 
 
Church Debts. 
 
 njuse in which they worship their Creator, as it is 
 now for ministers or elders to be " given to wine." 
 The conscience of the church is beginning to awake. 
 May it yet speak so as to be heard. 
 
 But, who will lead in this matter of church reform 1 
 Who will propose a plan which shall meet the appro- 
 bation of God, and of his church ? Let some church 
 act promptly in this matter. Let them pay their debt. 
 Let them tell that fact to their brethren, and show 
 them how it was done. Let others follow their noble 
 example, and soon the curse will be removed. 
 
 I would say, let the pastors of the congregations 
 w r hich are now in debt, bring the subject before their 
 people. Let them confess their sins in this matter, and 
 resolve to do, immediately, what they can to deliver 
 themselves from their debt. In this way, they will 
 show, at least, that they are sincere. Let the rich 
 give liberally of their abundance; and let the poor, 
 from the depth of their poverty, cast their mite into 
 the treasury of the Lord. Let there be a willing 
 mind, and a self-denying spirit, and soon the churches 
 will be delivered from this, worse than Egyptian 
 bondage. 
 
 I am disposed to think, that the church, as a body, 
 have lost sight, in a great degree, of the grand design 
 of their organization. And hence it is, that their ef- 
 forts, influence, and money, are so often turned aside 
 to the promotion of other objects than the advance- 
 ment of the cause of Christ. The object which the 
 Saviour has, in sending the gospel to us sinners, is, 
 that we may know the truth ; that we may believe on 
 him, and obtain everlasting life. Peter tells us that 
 "God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of 
 them a people for His name." Paul tells us, that "the 
 great God, even our Saviour, Jesus Christ, gave him- 
 self for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, 
 and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of 
 g©od works." The gospel is God's testimony in the 
 case, that these things are so. It is " good news" to 
 us, and to all who hear it. When any are converted, 
 and brought into the church, they become, professed- 
 
The Remedy. 71 
 
 ]y, at least, co-workers with God, in extending the 
 knowledge of the Redeemer, and the plan of salvation 
 through him. The grand work, yea, the only work 
 of the church, is to obey the last command of her 
 Lord. No other object, however good in itself, should 
 be allowed to interfere with the work which the Sa- 
 viour has committed to the church to perform. 
 
 Ministers may be engaged in a great many useful 
 works, besides preaching the gospel ; but they were 
 never ordained for any thing else than to preach the 
 gospel. That is the work which God gave them to do. 
 And let them see to it, that they "take heed to the mi- 
 nistry which they have received in the Lord, that they 
 fulfil it." The members of our churches may also be 
 engaged in many useful and benevolent works; but 
 the work which the Lord has given them to do, is to 
 glorify him by bearing the fruits of the spirit, and by 
 making known to others the unsearchable riches of 
 Christ. Christians are to be the light of the world. 
 They are to let their light shine; and so shine, that 
 others, seeing their good works, may be led to glorify 
 God. This is, then, the grand duty of the church of 
 Christon the earth. Forthis specific purpose the church 
 has been organized, and has been kept in existence 
 until the present time. It is her business to labor for 
 the salvation of men. It is her only work. No other 
 work that she can engage in, can ever, in any degree, 
 compensate for her neglect of this duty. The Saviour 
 has assigned it to her, and she must do it. 
 
 There are multitudes of persons in the world, to at- 
 tend to the interests of commerce, of agriculture, and 
 of science. There are societies formed for attending 
 to all those varied objects, and they will do it. But 
 the church of Jesus Christ, as such, has nothing to do 
 in these matters. Her business is to attend to the last 
 command of her Lord, and to see that it is obeyed. 
 As individuals, and as members of society, Christians 
 have duties to perform, in reference to this world, as 
 well as other men. But, as members of the church 
 of Christ, their only duty is to see that the command 
 
72 Church Debts. 
 
 of their Lord is obeyed to the very letter. As this is 
 their work, and as he has made his people stewards of 
 his property, for the express purpose that they may 
 do the work, for which he has chosen them from out 
 of the world, what right have they to divert their 
 Lord's money from its appropriate use, to any thing 
 else? We certainly have no objections to rail roads 
 and steamboats, or any of the improvements of the 
 day; but, we would ask, again, with all sincerity, 
 where does the Christian find his authority for enter- 
 ing with a whole soul, and with an open and liberal 
 hand, into all the speculations of the day, while he 
 gives so sparingly to the very cause which he has so- 
 lemnly pledged" himself, in the sight of God and of 
 man, that he will sustain? There is a discrepancy be- 
 tween the conduct and professions of such Christians 
 which no man can reconcile. If that is the spirit of 
 Christianity, then I say heathenism is consistency com- 
 pared with it. Ah ! how eager are many, who bear 
 the livery of heaven, to catch the first news of the 
 state of the markets at home and abroad; and yet, 
 how slow are they to inquire after the prosperity of 
 that very cause which God has placed them to watch 
 over, and for the promotion of which he has entrusted 
 so much wealth in their hands! Such conduct is very 
 much of a piece with that of those parents, who are 
 constantly visiting their neighbors, and are caressing 
 their children, but show little or no concern for the 
 temporal or spiritual good of their own. There is, 
 certainly, something wrong here. I do not say that* 
 there is hypocrisy in the souls of such; but it really 
 looks like it. However, we must not say so, lest we 
 should offend any of our readers. Still, I should like 
 to know what name they would give such conduct. 
 
 To those, therefore, who possess their Lord's mo- 
 ney, I would say: Remember that you are but stew- 
 ards. Your term of office will soon expire. " Make 
 to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteous- 
 ness, that when ye fail, they may receive you into 
 everlasting habitations." If you prove unfaithful to 
 
Design of the Church. 73 
 
 your trust, if you will spend your Lord's money in 
 attending to your own business, and neglect his work, 
 will he not require it at your hand ? He became poor 
 for your sake, and you became rich by being unfaith- 
 ful to your Lord. How can you meet Jesus, and tell 
 him that you left his sanctuary in debt, because you 
 wished to get gain through the unfaithful use of his 
 money? As an honest Christian, resolve, " I will, God 
 helping me, do my duty in this matter." 
 
 There is a church in this city about $40,000 in debt ! 
 There is another about 8 30,000 in debt ! Another 
 $28,000 ! Now, in the nature of the case, such church- 
 es cannot be blessed of God. To pray for a revival 
 of pure and undefiled religion, in such churches, and 
 under such circumstances, is absurd. With the so- 
 lemn declaration of God in Malachi iii. 8 — 10, sound- 
 ing in their ears, I wonder how they dare pray for 
 the descent of the Holy Spirit. With the views I have 
 of the character of God, I do not see how he can be 
 true to his word, and revive churches that thus rob 
 him. But it is not what the writer thinks. The ques- 
 tion is, what are the dealings of God in the case of 
 such churches? See, and judge for yourselves. Does 
 God revive his work there? Does his word have free 
 course? Is it glorified? Alas! it is chained by a debt. 
 As well might a Christian mount to the throne of God 
 with the world tied to his feet, as God's word have 
 free course with such a clog appended to it. Oh! the 
 dishonesty (or hypocrisy, if you choose) of men, who 
 call themselves by the name of Christ — who gratify 
 their pride and covetousness with their Lord's money 
 — who refuse to bring all the tithes in the Lord's store- 
 house—who hide their sins from the ministers of Christ, 
 till they are called and settled over them, and who 
 then hope through the prayers and preachings of God's 
 ministers to grow in grace, and to ripen for heaven, 
 while the word of the Lord thunders in their ears: 
 "jYe are cursed with a curse; for ye have robbed me, 
 even this whole nation." Oh, ye^servants of the Lord, 
 lift up your voices like trumpets; cry aloud and spare 
 
?4 Church Debts. 
 
 not; declare unto the people their sins, and make 
 known to them their transgression. Why do you la- 
 bor in vain? Why spend your strength for nought? 
 Cease not to warn the people, till they remove this 
 Achan from the camp of the Lord, that Israel may 
 enter the land of promise. 
 
 Come, then, ye stewards of God, be faithful to your 
 trust. Keep not back your Lord's money. Pay the 
 debt upon his house. Then will the windows of hea- 
 ven be opened, and a blessing be poured out upon you, 
 upon your families, and upon your ministers, that there 
 shall not be room enough to receive it. Prove the 
 Lord by doing your duty. 
 
 I have a few thoughts for the ladies in my next. 
 
 I am yours, as ever, in the war against church 
 debts, W. R. 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 To the Ladies. 
 
 I have promised, in this letter to say something to 
 the ladies on church debts. The Apostle Paul (and 
 certainly he should know) says, that "there is a dif- 
 ference between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried 
 woman careth for the things of the Lord, that she 
 may be holy in body and in spirit ; but she that is mar- 
 ried careth for the things of the world, how she may 
 please her husband." Now, if it be so, that there is a 
 class of persons in the church, who do care "for the 
 things of the Lord," I certainly may hope to enlist 
 them in the good cause of trying to deliver the Lord's 
 house from the curse of a debt which rests upon it. 
 But I by no means think that those who " care for the 
 things of the world, how they may please their hus- 
 bands," have lost their "care for the things of the 
 Lord." Far from it. Many in ancient and in modern 
 limes have been, ancf still are, among the foremost in 
 
Female Influence. 75 
 
 every good work. I have not forgotten that it was 
 through the influence which Lady William Bentick 
 exerted over her husband, while he was Governor 
 General oflndia, that the horrid system of Suttee was 
 abolished throughout the English provinces. Women 
 have a power over " the lords of creation" which is 
 mighty. And the simple truth is, after all said and 
 done, women rule the icorld. Queen Victoria rules 
 England. And Dr. Giustiniani tells us that the Coun- 
 tess Giovennino rules the Pope. (See his work, page 
 29.) When they rule well, I would say amen ; but, 
 when ill, woe is unto the world. The operation of 
 the thing reminds me of a Sungskrit Shlok, which I 
 will repeat : 
 
 Devadheen jugud surwum ; 
 Muntradhenuch-u-divatum ; 
 Tun ruuntro Brahmunadhenum ; 
 Brahmuno mum-u-divatum. 
 
 Englished thus: 
 
 The world is subject to God ; 
 
 God is subject to the muntru ; 
 
 The muntru is subject to the Brahmun ; 
 
 Therefore, the Brahmun is my God. 
 
 A more free translation of the idea would be — 
 
 The church is subject to a withering debt : 
 
 The debt is subject to men, who keep the purse ; 
 
 The men are subject to women, (wives and daughters ;) 
 
 Therefore, women can deliver the church from debt. 
 
 If this is not good logic, I am certain the conclusion 
 reached is a very pleasing one. At all events, I be- 
 lieve it can be done by them. Yea, more, I believe it 
 will be done by them ; if not directly, it will be done 
 indirectly, through the influence they may exert on 
 this subject. 
 
 But to the point in hand. There are two classes of 
 unmarried ladies in the church, to whose consideration 
 I would now present a few thoughts, viz. : those who 
 have not, and those who have, an abundance of this 
 world's goods. I take it for granted, that all of you 
 
76 Church Debts. 
 
 love your Lord and Saviour; and that you have sin- 
 cerely consecrated your all to his service; and that 
 you consider yourselves as not your own, but the 
 Lord's. To you I say, the house of your Lord is in 
 debt ! It must be redeemed. Many of you have but 
 little of this world's goods; but you have what is far 
 better. You have influence. You have influence at a 
 throne of grace; and you have influence over the 
 minds of many. Use your influence at the throne of 
 grace, that God may incline his people to do what is 
 honest and right in this matter. You may influence 
 a father, or a mother, or some friend to do, in this 
 cause, a noble work for God and for the church. 
 Resolve that you will try. And when a plan shall be 
 laid before you, for liquidating the debt upon the 
 churches, give as God may enable you. I ask no 
 more of you, except to follow your efforts with prayer, 
 fervent and continued. 
 
 To those ladies who have an abundance of their 
 Lord's money at their disposal, I would say, (1st,) 
 remember that Jesus Christ became poor for your 
 sakes; not that you should become rich in this world, 
 but that you should be rich in faith and in good works. 
 Remember (2d) that you are only stewards, and that 
 soon you must render in your account to the Great 
 Shepherd and Bishop of your souls, and receive your 
 reward according to .the mode in which you have 
 acted for your God. Some of you may have friends 
 who are dependant on you for a temporal support. Ot 
 course, a portion of the Lord's money in your hands 
 must go for their good. But many of you are other- 
 wise circumstanced. You have far morethan enough to 
 support you, even to old age. And when you shall 
 have passed into eternity, you will have left some thou- 
 sands of God's money to be divided among those who 
 may use it only for their own gratification, and to the 
 injury, if not the ruin, of their souls. Oh ! how it 
 would grieve you now, if some one should find their 
 way into your coffers, and should squander away all 
 your wealth in vanity and in sin, just leaving you 
 
A work for Christian Ladies, 77 
 
 enough to sustain you while you lived, and to bury 
 you when dead ! Should you not grieve to think that 
 while you are on the earth, you are keeping riches to 
 your hurt, and that when you shall die, they will fall 
 jnto the hands of, you know not whom— perhaps a wise 
 man, perhaps a fool? No matter into whose hands 
 they may fall, you have no guarantee that the proper- 
 ty God has put into your hands, to be used for his 
 glory, will be thus used. God will hold you account- 
 able for it. He has made ijou a steward of his pro- 
 perty, and you cannot roll your responsibility upon 
 another. Is it, then, wise, is it safe, for you to waste 
 it upon yourself, in needless expense, or to hoard it 
 up, to be a curse to others when you are gone? 
 
 This is a solemn thought, ft is one which you 
 should most devoutly ponder and pray over. Jt will 
 meet you on your dying pillow. It will meet vou, as 
 you stand before the Saviour as your Judo- e ,*in the 
 great day. Ah ! my wealthy friend, how°can vou 
 meet the Saviour, and there confess before the uni- 
 verse that you injured your soul and hindered the 
 work of your Lord, by spending your time, on earth, 
 in pleasing yourself, and in laboriously striving to keep 
 the Lord's money together, instead of scattering it with 
 a wise and prudent hand, for the glory of God^nd for 
 the salvation of souls. When the elders of the Jews 
 came to Jesus, beseeching him to come and heal the 
 centurion's servant, they said, "He was worthy for 
 whom He should do this; for he loveth our nation, 
 and hath built us a synagogue." How much better 
 lor you, both now and at the appearing of your Lord 
 to have some redeemed congregation of saints, from 
 among the heathen, or in a Christian land, rise up and 
 say, concerning you, "She is worthy— for she hath 
 loved us, and hath built us a church/' than to have 
 them rise up in judgment, and condemn you, because, 
 for your own gratification, you had kept back your 
 Lord s money, left his church in debt, and ruined souls, 
 for want of that aid you neglected to give? 
 There is a custom which prevails very generally in 
 
78 Church Debts. 
 
 India, of young females devoting themselves for life to 
 the service of their idol gods. Their business is to wash 
 and dress the idol, to keep the apartments clean, and 
 to assist the worshippers in a variety of ways in the 
 worship of the idol. These girls never marry. The 
 idol is their husband. Their whole energies, youth, 
 beauty, soul, and body, are given, without reserve, to 
 the promotion of the glory and honor of the idol and 
 of the temple. The idea is a beautiful one. I would 
 that the youthful, beautiful, and wealthy maidens of our 
 land could be induced to devote themselves, without 
 reserve, to the service of a pure and holy God, and 
 thus exemplify the idea of Paul, that the unmarried 
 woman careth for the things of the Lord. I do not 
 mean that they should go into nunneries, for that is a 
 perversion of God's plan in reference to this portion of 
 the human family. But I do mean that they should 
 devote their energies to the service of God, in doing 
 good, and in letting their light shine, so that others 
 may see their good works, and be, in like manner, led 
 to glorify God. Unreserved consecration of heart and 
 life is needed. 
 
 I am fully convinced that the Christian female has 
 a heart to feel for the miseries of others. The cry of 
 the destitute from India, from Burmah, and from the 
 islands of the sea, has not been unheeded. Many have 
 followed in the footsteps of Mrs. Newell and Judson, 
 those pioneers in American missions. Their names 
 are embalmed in the memory of the churches. Many 
 more are willing to make similar sacrifices, and to for- 
 sake all at home for the cause of Christ. But is it not 
 too often true, that 
 
 " 'Tis distance lends enchantment to the view," 
 
 while objects quite as worthy our attention are over- 
 looked, because near at hand? There certainly can 
 be no good reason for our feeling so deeply for sinners 
 afar off, and for giving liberally to save them, and yet 
 feel so little and give so sparingly for the conversion 
 of sinners at our very doors. The destitutions of this 
 
Destitution of this City. 79 
 
 city are far greater than the most of persons imagine. 
 In East and West Kensington there is a population of 
 about 46,776. For these there is church room for 
 10,000 out of 46,000! 
 
 In the District of Moyamensing there is a popula- 
 tion of about 27,000. Of this number about 4,000 are 
 colored. They have church room for only 7 or 800. 
 
 For the white population there are only four 
 churches, viz.: 
 
 1 Presbyterian Church, seating 800. 
 1 Methodist " " 1,000. 
 
 1 Episcopal « " 300. 
 
 1 Roman " " 1,000, 
 
 There is, then, church room for about 3,100 out of 
 the 24,000. 
 
 There are unlicensed groggeries, 280 ! ! 
 " licensed T < 10!! 
 
 2,000 children go to no school. 
 
 2,000, above the age of fifteen, cannot read or 
 write. 
 
 About 12,000 adults have no church room. 
 
 The District of Southwark and the City proper are 
 no better supplied. How can 150 churches, accom- 
 modating only about 75,000, be sufficient for 340,000 
 people? But I am told that the churches which are 
 built are not. full. True; but that is not the worst of 
 it. They never icill be, under the present system of things. 
 Let Christians pay their debts to God, by paying the 
 debts of their churches, and then they can, in honesty, 
 urge their fellow-men to do their duty. When church 
 members, who are in debt for their church, go out to 
 invite their neighbors and friends to the church, it 
 looks a little like asking them to come and help them 
 pay their debt. I can assure you that many under- 
 stand it so. Let Christians pay their debts ; then let 
 them ask their friends to come and hear God's word, 
 in God's house, without a debt upon it, and soon the 
 sanctuaries of the Lord will be filled with devout wor- 
 shippers. Now, ladies, can you not deliver some of 
 the churches from debt 1 I know you can. You will 
 
80 Church Debts. 
 
 Jeave your wealih after a while to those who may not 
 deserve or may not need it. Why should you not give 
 it to your Saviour now? Who will lead the way? 
 Blessed will be the memory of her who will thus de- 
 vote the Lord's money, which she holds as a steward, 
 for the promotion of his cause. 
 
 I shall consider the second mode for removing the 
 curse of church debts in my next. 
 
 Yours, as ever, W. R. 
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 I will address this letter also to my respected 
 sisters in Christ, who are the stewards of a larger por- 
 tion of their Lord's money than they need for the be- 
 nefit of themselves, or for those who are dependant on 
 them. 
 
 My object in addressing you, my Christian friends, 
 is to interest your hearts more deeply in the work 
 which the Lord hath given you to do. I desire that 
 you may be found faithful; so that when your Lord 
 shall call you to give an account of your stewardship, 
 you may do it with joy, and may receive the plaudit 
 of "well done!" If any do not prove faithful in the 
 use of the unrighteous Mammon, which God hath put 
 into their hands, He will not commit to them the true 
 riches. He will not receive them into his glory. This 
 is a solemn thought. The possession of everlasting 
 habitations is made to depend on a right use of the 
 wealth and influence which God has committed to our 
 trust. Covetousness excludes from heaven. It debases 
 the nobleness of the soul as certainly and as deeply as 
 the act of worshipping a dumb idol. 
 
 Let me sketch a portrait of one, it may be of many, 
 who a re known to you. She is (1st.) a lady of wealth, 
 
The Contrast. 81 
 
 and a member of a Christian church. (2.) She lives 
 at ease, in a degree of splendor and pomp. (3.) Her 
 dress is of the best, for she has the means to procure 
 what she fancies, and therefore lacks nothing that her 
 heart can desire. (4.) Her house is neat, if not grand; 
 her furniture costly and fashionable ; her table, if not 
 sumptuous, is always laden with the best the season 
 can produce. (5.) Her time is spent in the way most 
 agreeable to herself. On the Sabbath she visits the 
 church, provided she has no fears of soiling her dress 
 by exposure to the weather. Her days are spent in 
 the oversight of her house : in giving and in receiving 
 visits of friendship; and in visiting places and scenes 
 that may gratify and amuse. (6.) Her mind is stored 
 with what may be gathered from the lighter publica- 
 tions of the day, as annuals and magazines, for her 
 education was finished when she left the school-room 
 some years ago. (7.) She has a heart to feel for the dis- 
 tress of others, when a case is properly presented to her 
 mind ; and will give, if she has anything she can con- 
 veniently spare. She doubts not but that many widows 
 and fatherless children might be fed and clothed with 
 the excess of her wardrobe and table, above what she 
 needs for herself to live in Christian simplicity, but she 
 knows not who they are, and does not feel disposed to 
 search for them. She sees not the deep distress of 
 many of the children of God, and hears not the cry of 
 distress. Her enjoyments and amusements lead her 
 amid other scenes, where plenty always crowns the 
 board. She does, at times, do good to others, but that 
 is with her a secondary consideration ; and even then 
 it is made a matter of convenience, rather than of 
 conscience. 
 
 Now let me contrast this conduct with that of Him 
 whose disciple she professes to be. (1st.) He was 
 rich, but became poor for our sakes. (2d.) His life 
 was one of industry and labor, and he led a life of hu- 
 mility, despising the pomp of this world. (3d.) His 
 dress was simple and plain. (4th.) His house could 
 not be grand, for oft-times he had not where to lay 
 7* 
 
82 Church Debts. 
 
 his head. (5th.) His time was spent, not in doing his 
 own will, but the will of him that sent him into this 
 world. He went about doing good. (6th.) His mind 
 was filled with knowledge drawn from the fountain of 
 truth. (7th.) He sought out objects of charity and of 
 distress. He denied himself, that others might be be- 
 nefited. To do good was the object of his life, and 
 not an occasional act. 
 
 What think you of this picture of the contrast 1 The 
 world, and many in the church, may think that such a 
 lady is not an idolater. But God's word has settled 
 that question: she "that liveth luxuriously or extrava- 
 gantly (spatulosa, Greek) is dead while she liveth." 1 
 Tim. v. 6. She is a lover of self more than of God. 
 She is spiritually dead. I beseech you, imitate not 
 such an one. How much better for you to imitate the 
 example of your Lord, in going about doing good to 
 others, rather than in seeking your own comfort and 
 convenience in all things. 
 
 The world is full of objects upon which you can 
 bestow your benevolence. As you have espoused the 
 cause of Christ, and hold your Lord's property for the 
 promotion of his glory, how can you glorify God more 
 than by giving it for the advancement of his cause? 
 There are many feeble churches which are struggling 
 for existence. Their pastors are faithful and laborious, 
 but their efforts are crippled, and their spirit crushed 
 within them, under the weight of a burden which they 
 cannot remove, but which you could with one of your 
 fingers. And yet it is not done. If you will but take 
 the trouble to inquire, you will find many churches 
 which have been compelled to part with their pastors 
 again and again, because they were not able to give 
 them the small sum they had promised them. They 
 had hoped that the stewards of the Lord's money 
 would have aided them in their holy enterprise. But, 
 no; they have been left to struggle and die. Others 
 are gasping for life, while it is in your power to say 
 unto them, "Live." I have often wondered why it is 
 that wealthy Christians, in wealthy churches, can look 
 
A Heathen Temple oat of Debt. 83 
 
 with such composure upon the struggles of their bre- 
 thren in carrying on the work of the Lord, and yet, 
 either give them no aid, or only such aid as merely 
 keeps them alive, and compels them to drag out a 
 miserable existence. By a single word they could in- 
 fuse new life into the whole congregation, could place 
 the church free from all embarrassment, and lift up the 
 downcast spirit of the minister of Christ; but they do 
 it not. Is it because they wish to glory in the fact that 
 they are " rich and increased in goods, and have need 
 of nothing ?" Is it that they may compel their Chris- 
 tian brethren to enter the kingdom of heaven through 
 great tribulation? What gratification can they have 
 in seeing a Christian church groaning under a church 
 debt, and struggling for existence, when they might so 
 easily make them powerfully instrumental in doing 
 good, and in making inroads upon the kingdom of 
 darkness? I really am at a loss to know why it is 
 that Christians, and especially Christian ladies who 
 are wealthy, have overlooked this great and import- 
 ant duty of delivering the churches of their Lord from 
 debt. For wealthy Christians in a wealthy church to 
 be in debt for the house of their God, it is a deep dis- 
 grace. They may make all the apologies they choose 
 for the sin, but they cannot throw off the reproach, nor 
 can they convince the world that there is any other 
 cause for the continuance of the curse than the cove- 
 tousness of the people or lack of piety. 
 
 Now, Christian ladies, let me ask you, what better 
 disposal can you make of your Lord's money than to 
 redeem his house from the bondage of a crushing 
 debt? This will be a conquest worthy of your efforts. 
 You will win, not one heart, but many. It will be 
 honorable. It will bring glory to God, and will result 
 in the salvation of many souls. 
 
 The Rev. Mr. Kincaid, missionary in Burmah, in 
 speaking of the great temple at Ava, says: "This 
 structure is 200 feet square, the walls being 8 feet 
 thick and 70 high. On the top of it is a structure 150 
 feet square and 50 feet high ; on this a third, 120 fe ot 
 
84 Church Debts. 
 
 square and 30 feet high ; and on this a fourth, 75 feet 
 square and 10 feet high, from the top of which ascends 
 a magnificent spire. From the top of this spire, and 
 of a spire ascending from each of the four corners of 
 each of the four structures are suspended bells, in all 
 two hundred, with clappers so constructed that a strong 
 wind keeps them ringing. On walking along by this 
 temple, when the wind is strong, and all these bells are 
 ringing, a wonderful sensation is produced, as though 
 music was falling all around from the clouds. This 
 temple was a free-will offering from the heathen to 
 tjaeir gods, with which it is filled." 
 
 I might make many reflections on this fact, but 
 ;hall conclude with the following lines on seeing 
 
 A HEATHEN TEMPLE OUT OF DEBT. 
 
 As near a temple once I stood, 
 
 I saw a mighty multitude 
 
 Of heathen, prostrate on the ground, 
 
 While music filled the air around; 
 
 Two hundred bells, in concert met, 
 
 Proclaimed, " This temple's out of debt." 
 
 The priests arose amidst the crowd ; 
 With stentor voice they shout aloud, 
 We've cheered the heart of Gaudama, 
 By rearing up this pagoda; 
 The bells around, with wond'rous glee, 
 Ring loud, " From debt this house is free.* 
 
 This house we freely dedicate 
 To all the gods, both small and great; 
 The people rose, and upwards went 
 A shout which e'en the heavens rent: 
 Great Gaudama ! we give to thee 
 This costly fane — from debt 'tis free. 
 
 Again they bow'd, and shouted loud — 
 One joyous feeling filled the crowd ; 
 In exultation loud they sing, 
 And yield their hearts an offering : 
 
A Heathen Temple out of Debt. 85 
 
 Hail Gaudama! Still glorious be; 
 Dwell in thy house ! From debt 'tis free. 
 
 A Christian church I entered then — 
 Within were women, children, men; 
 A deep-toned organ sounded loud, 
 To gratify the well-dressed crowd; 
 But now and then 'twas heard to say, 
 I am in debt, and should not play. 
 
 The organist the keys did fret, 
 
 But still it said, " I am in debt." 
 
 The thund'ring bass, the sharp falsette, 
 
 Repeat the sound, " I am in debt." 
 
 And Echo did all else forget — 
 
 iShe cried aloud, " In debt — in debt." 
 
 The pastor preached, and prayed, and wept — 
 
 The people thoughtless heard or slept; 
 
 The cause of this now understand: 
 
 Upon the wall I saw a hand, 
 
 Of awful form, write " I-cha-bod — 
 
 A debt is on this house of God." 
 
 Just o'er his head, where all could see, 
 The hand records, " Ye have robbed me; 
 Your vain oblations I despise, 
 They're despicable in mine eyes ; 
 In vain ye have together met, 
 While still my house remains in debt." 
 
 The preacher cried, Awake ! awake ! 
 Your pride and worldliuess forsake; 
 Your God reproach and rob no more, 
 His free forgiveness now implore. 
 Repent ; — His house redeem from debt ; 
 Echo, responding, says, " from debt." 
 
 I turned and wept, in deep distress, 
 To see the church's w T orldliness. 
 Lord! in thy churches can it be 
 There is so little piety '? 
 
•80 Church Debts. 
 
 Thy people, covetous, forget 
 
 Their vows, and leave thy house in debt! 
 
 Why weepest thou ? a heathen said ; 
 Are all thy friends and kindred dead ? 
 Ah! no; the Church through gold is curs'd. 
 He said, "Of sinners you're the worst; 
 We're not as bad as Christians yet; 
 Our gods have temples out of debt." 
 
 Yours, as ever, in the war against church debts. 
 
 W. R. 
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 I will now turn your attention to the second plan 
 already suggested, for the purpose of liquidating the 
 debts upon the churches. The plan is very simple. 
 It is this: Let the strong help the weak. Let some of 
 those Christians who are not needed to sustain the 
 cause of God in the wealthier churches, leave them, 
 and go and aid their brethren in the feebler churches. 
 In this way they will help to bear each other's bur- 
 dens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. 
 
 I will illustrate my meaning by a case which is wor- 
 thy of being recorded. There are, I trust, many like 
 it. May there be many more! It is this: In con- 
 versing with Mr. K., a worthy member of the Metho- 
 dist Church, the following conversation took place: 
 
 I. Where now do you attend church? 
 
 K. I attend the Wharton St. Church. 
 
 I. When did you go there 1 
 
 K. 1 will tell you. You know we built a church 
 there some time ago. We had a very good minister; 
 but, as the population was very much scattered, and 
 there were but few members, the church did not pros- 
 per. It was then proposed that a number of members 
 
The Proper Feeling, 87 
 
 from the city churches should go and aid them. About 
 two hundred of us volunteered to go. Some go as far 
 as two miles or more, every Sabbath and through the 
 week. I have been there about two years. Our 
 coming inspired the minister and the people with new 
 zeal. We went to work, and we have now a mem- 
 bership of about six hundred. 
 
 I. Well, my friend, you adopted the right plan ; and 
 if other weak churches could be aided in the same way, 
 they might prosper too. 
 
 K. No doubt of it. Feeble churches need something 
 else besides money. 
 
 I. I suppose you are not sorry that you have left 
 your old church, to labor there ? 
 
 K. No, sir. We have seen some precious times 
 there. But, as they are pretty strong now, some of 
 us are drawing off, with the intention of aiding some 
 other feeble church. 
 
 I. Go on in your good work, my brother, and may 
 the Lord prosper you ! 
 
 We shook hands, and parted. 
 
 Now, something like this might be done, with the 
 greatest ease imaginable, for every feeble church. 
 Yea, more, it ought to be done ; and then the word of 
 God would have free course, and be glorified. But 
 will Christians do so ? Probably not. But the time 
 will come, when God shall raise up another generation 
 of Christians, who will possess a different spirit. " The 
 inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let 
 us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the 
 Lord of Hosts. I also will go." They will not only 
 go to different parts of the same city, to excite their 
 brethren to praise God, but they will go to different 
 cities. Ah ! says one, that is all prophecy. That is a 
 future event. When that time comes, then we'll do 
 better. We cannot expect things to be much better 
 now. But is it not just as much the duty of Christians 
 now to excite each other to love and good works, as 
 ever it can be? I certainly think so. Why, then, do 
 they not do it? 
 
88 Church Debts. 
 
 The feeling of many Christians on this subject re- 
 minds me of a conversation I once had with my for- 
 mer teacher, Sukha-Ram, an intelligent Brahmun, on 
 the subject of the downfall of Hindooism. It was in 
 the year 1832. I observed to him, that the religion of 
 Jesus Christ would ere long supplant that of Boodh, of 
 Krishnu, of Mahmood, &c^ He replied, " 1 believe it. 
 It is written in the Shastru, that in about forty years 
 from this time (1870) the Hindoo religion will be de- 
 stroyed ; and 1 think that Christianity will do it." 
 " Well," said I, " if that be so, you had better take the 
 lead of your countrymen, and give up Hindooism, and 
 embrace Christianity." " No, no," said lie; " our re- 
 ligion must exist till that time, and I must try to hold 
 it up till then. When it is God's wish to let it go down, 
 then I am willing to give it up, and embrace something 
 else." 
 
 A great many Christians are fond of talking about 
 the Millennium, and the future glory of the church — 
 of the happy times that will then be, and how they 
 would rejoice to live then, and be engaged in serving 
 God; while they are doing nothing, comparatively 
 speaking, to hasten that day they so much desire. 
 But these persons mistake their feelings. There is 
 more of Hindooism than Christianity in such a spirit. 
 Sukha-Ram had no objection to become a Christian, 
 or anything else, after the temple of Hindooism should 
 fall; but while it would stand, his shoulder must lend 
 its strength to keep it up. So with these professing 
 Christians. They are perfectly willing (at least, in 
 words) to help on the cause of God in the Millennium, 
 for then all things will go on smoothly; but for the 
 present, they prefer to float on the current of worldly 
 feeling, and wait patiently for a better state of things. 
 I have long since come to the conclusion, that those 
 persons who talk so much about doing good at a future 
 time, and are always ready to take offence at the pre- 
 sent plans of doing good, and therefore stand aloof 
 from them, are either greatly deceived, or else very 
 great hypocrites. The word of God settles the mat- 
 
Rich and Poor Churches. 89 
 
 ter for ever, that the man who will not employ, at the 
 present time, the talent his Lord has given him, is an 
 unprofitable servant, and will be justly condemned for 
 his wicked neglect of duty. 
 
 There are many weak churches now in our country. 
 They have been brought into existence by the advice 
 and aid of the older and the wealthier churches. They 
 have acquired a certain amount of strength, but they 
 have not that amount of strength which is needful for 
 them to sustain themselves, and to make them efficient 
 instruments for doing great good in the world. And 
 there they are destined to remain, till they kill them- 
 selves by over exertion, or die in despair. The stronger 
 churches look on, and say, "Live," and very piously 
 pray, " The Lord help you — but we won't." 
 
 Such conduct reminds me of a fact which I will 
 here relate. A Mr. B., of this city, had a fine little 
 boy, of about four years of age. He appeared to be 
 the pride of both father and mother. He always was 
 neatly and tidily dressed. He was a little gentleman. 
 He was furnished with a cane and dumb watch. In 
 short, he was quite a dandy. I have often seen him 
 strut alongside of his father, as if there was not a par- 
 ticle of the child about him. But the high curb-stones 
 were sad things in his manly path. When crossing 
 the street, he would for a moment forget his manly 
 airs, and, child-like, get up as well as he could. His 
 father, seeing this, would pull him back, and make him 
 " step up like a man." If he appeared like failing, a 
 little external stimulus would often make him perform 
 the deed. This little gentleman, after all, was only a 
 child. One day, in making an attempt to "step up on 
 the curb-stone like a man," he sprained his back, and 
 was a cripple for life. My heart has been pained to 
 see the dear boy lying on the floor, unable even to sit 
 up; and all through the hateful pride of a parent, who 
 put a heavier load on the child than his age could bear. 
 He died after a few years of suffering. 
 
 Some of the wealthy churches in our land are just as 
 merciful. They have more men and money than they 
 8 
 
90 Church Debts. 
 
 know what to do with. And in their self-complacency, 
 they behold their brethren, who are laboring beyond 
 their strength to sustain the cause of God, and yet give 
 them not the aid they need. Or, if they do, it is only to 
 keep them in such a position, that it is as impossible 
 for them to rise above it as it is for a Shoodroo to sun- 
 der the bonds of caste, and enter the ranks of the Brah- 
 muns. There is a reason for this unnatural apathy on 
 the part of some in the church towards their brethren. 
 To point out the cause of this apathy, and to rebuke 
 this foul spirit, shall be my object in my next letter. 
 In the meantime, I would ask all the members of the 
 churches who may read this letter one or two ques- 
 tions. And, 
 
 1. What are you doing in the church to which you 
 belong? 
 
 2. Could not that church prosper just as well without 
 you, as with you? 
 
 3. If so, then are you not bound, as an honest man 
 and a Christian, to go where you can do some good, 
 and be of some use in the church of Christ? 
 
 4. Are you willing to stay where you are, and be a 
 cypher in the church, while you might elsewhere be 
 the means of saving many souls ? 
 
 What does conscience say? 
 
 I am, as ever, yours in the war against church 
 debts. W. R. 
 
 LETTER XVIII. 
 
 The plan proposed for liquidating the debts upon 
 the churches is, for some to leave their churches, 
 where their aid is not essential to the prosperity of the 
 church, and to unite with their brethren in some fee- 
 bler church, where their aid is needed, and where their 
 influence can be felt. This plan could easily be adopted 
 in this city, and with decided advantage. But, will it 
 
A Plan Proposed, 91 
 
 be done? I doubt it. It certainly will not be done, 
 unless the churches repent of their great sin in this 
 matter. How much more time they need to repent, 
 I cannot tell. A worthy friend has suggested to me 
 that I should pause, and give the churches time to 
 think on the subject. I will give them time to bring 
 forth fruit meet for repentance. But this, surely, need 
 not hinder me from pursuing this subject, or from en- 
 couraging them in their duty. A young man, on his 
 way to Northumberland, in this State, sometime ago, 
 saw some cherry-trees by the wayside, laden with 
 fruit. Just as he was about to take some of the fruit, 
 a woman appeared. When she came to the fence, 
 the young man said, " Madam, can I have some of 
 these cherries to eat?" She replied, " I don't know 
 about that." "Oh! well," said he, "I'll just eat on 
 until you can make up your mind on the subject." 
 He did so ; and after he was done, he said to her 
 again, " Madam, can I have some cherries?" She 
 crossly replied, " No, sir." "Thank you, madam," 
 said he, "and now I'll go." Now, while the church is 
 making up her mind whether she will repent or not, 
 I will help her in the matter, by suggesting a few 
 thoughts for her encouragement. I'll go on, while 
 she thinks about it. 
 
 I have said that I doubt whether the churches will 
 adopt this plan or not. My reason is, that the churches 
 seem unwilling to do their duty in this matter unless 
 driven to it. To give you my meaning, I would ask 
 you, how many churches in this city, for example, 
 have been built through simple love to God, and 
 through an ardent desire to promote His glory alone? 
 Again, how many have been built, because the mem- 
 bers in the old church fell out with the minister, or 
 with one another, and therefore determined to go and 
 worship by themselves? Again, how many have been 
 built, because a few desired a handsomer church than 
 the old one? It would seem that, in most cases, some- 
 thing besides the love of God constrains Christians to 
 build churches. If the love of God alone had prompt- 
 
92 Church Debts. 
 
 ed them to build churches, the same love would have 
 compelled them to pay for them. So I judge. 
 
 But Christians have always needed something to 
 push them forward in duty. The primitive Christians 
 were no doubt, very happy while they were all cooped 
 up in Jerusalem, and could every Sabbath attend 
 church, and hear a good sermon 1'rom James or one 
 of the apostles. They began to feel, perhaps, that one 
 part of religion consisted in hearing sermons, and the 
 other in praising or condemning them, which appears 
 to be the religion of not a few in our days. But God 
 did not bring them into the church merely that they 
 might be fed. He converted them that they might do 
 something for His glory. They were not, however, 
 going to leave their good preachers and their good 
 meetings to go out and labor among the ignorant and 
 degraded. Not they. They felt too comfortable to 
 make any change, though they were doing little or no 
 good where they were, and might do much elsewhere. 
 Seeing this wrong feeling in the church, the Lord soon 
 corrected it. He allowed persecution to arise against 
 the church at Jerusalem, and soon "they were scattered 
 abroad, and went everywhere preaching the word." 
 God is determined that his people shall be as salt scat- 
 tered abroad in the earth. If they will not go wil- 
 lingly, he will find means to make them go and do 
 their duty. 
 
 Now, it is ihe same spirit of apathy in our days, 
 mixed with a good deal of pride and worldliness, that 
 leads many church members to crowd into and stay 
 in churches where they must know they can do no 
 good in promoting the glory of God. A question here 
 may be asked, why do they stay? I answer, it is 
 not, 
 
 1st. Because the gospel is preached nowhere else, 
 and hence they stay there for the purpose of hearing 
 it. 
 
 2d. Nor is it because the gospel is preached better 
 in their churches than anywhere else. If we are to 
 judge from the number of sound conversions which 
 
Why are Idlers in the Church ? 93 
 
 take place in a church, whether the gospel is preached 
 in its purity or not, we must come to the conclusion, 
 that the gospel is preached in the weaker and poorer 
 churches, as well as in the stronger and richer ones. 
 
 3d. Nor can it be because they are needed in their 
 own churches to carry forward the work of the Lord. 
 So far from this being the case, the minister would be 
 just as well supported without them as with them. The 
 prayer meetings and the Sabbath school could and do 
 move on without them. They are, in fact, of little 
 use, except to swell the number of hearers, and to add 
 to the respectability of the appearance of the congre- 
 gation. That, however, is a very important item in 
 the opinion of some. These brethren are almost cy- 
 phers in the church. This does not arise from the 
 fact that they are, in themselves, good for nothing. 
 On the contrary, they may be very good, and we pre- 
 sume they are; but they are out of their place. There 
 is either no room for them to work, or else there are 
 others in the church who do it all, and leave nothing 
 for them to do but to look on, and praise the work 
 done, or else find fault with it. A wheel is a very es- 
 sential part of a wagon, but is of no use if out of its 
 place. It may be a good, or a good-for-nothing wheel, 
 according to the place it occupies. So it is with many 
 church members. They forget the command, " To do 
 good and communicate, forget not; for with such sac- 
 rifices God is well pleased." And being out of their 
 place, they are good for nothing. 
 
 The question still arises, why is it that so many 
 Christians feel disposed to crowd into the large and 
 wealthy churches, and stay in them, while they must 
 feel that they are of very little use there, and might 
 be of use elsewhere 1 I answer, there are many rea- 
 sons: 
 
 And, 1st, family pride. 
 
 I will mention to you a fact, while I conceal the 
 names, and you can give the proper name to the feel- 
 ing, if I have mistaken it. A Mr. A. B. was a mem- 
 ber of the congregation C. in this city. After some 
 8* 
 
04 Church Debts. 
 
 time he left it, and united himself, with bis family, to 
 another church of the same denomination, which con- 
 tained a larger number of members, and a wealthier 
 class of people. Being asked one day by a friend 
 why he left a church where his influence was felt, to 
 go into one where he could do no good, and where he 
 must be a perfect cypher? He replied : M I know it 
 is so ; but, then ; that poor church is a miserable place 
 for a man to get his daughters married off!'' 
 
 Now, look at this man's conduct for a moment. He 
 connects himself with a church where there is a pros- 
 pect of his doing some good. He professes to be ac- 
 tuated in this matter through love to God alone. The 
 Lord gives him a family. These he professedly dedi- 
 cates to God, and solemnly promises to train them up 
 for the service of God. His family grow up around 
 him, and he begins to feel concerned for their settle- 
 ment in life. And now what shall be done? He has 
 a lovely daughter or two. The seal of God's cove- 
 nant is on them ; they are His. The father, however, 
 begins to doubt the faithfulness of God. He is not 
 willing, now, to stay where he can do good, and labor 
 for the glory of that God who has given him these 
 lovely daughters, and has preserved them in health til) 
 the present time. He cannot trust God to order their 
 lot well in after life. Satan shows him the kingdoms 
 of this world, and the glory of them, and his heart is 
 captivated by the phantom. His purpose is now fixed: 
 " I'll leave this church. The people are pious; but 
 they are not wealthy. I'll unite with another church, 
 where there is more wealth. Then I can introduce 
 my family. My daughters can form alliances which 
 will enable them to live, if not in affluence, certainly 
 at ease and in plenty, for life." The deed is done. The 
 man is received by the minister and elders, who hold 
 out to him the right hand of fellowship, and who trust 
 that he will be a helper in the vineyard of the Lord. 
 But, oh ! how sadly are they mistaken. They have 
 taken an Achan into the camp, and instead of being a 
 blessing, he is a curse to them. He does no good, for 
 
The Love of Gain, 95 
 
 that is not his aim. He keeps up the forms of godli- 
 ness, but his object is to sacrifice these devoted daugh- 
 ters upon the altar of Mammon. He consults not for 
 the spiritual good of his children. Whether they shall 
 be saved or lost, is now a secondary consideration. 
 The grand idea is to exalt the family by an alliance 
 with wealth. Let us suppose it is done; and what 
 now ? The pride of the family is gratified ; but the 
 child is sacrificed through the " cursed love of gold." 
 The father has thrown a barrier in the way of his 
 child's salvation that may never be removed. He has 
 been deceived through the deceitfulness of riches. 
 The death-bed scene of such a man is not to be 
 desired. 
 
 Let me here say to all those who are in danger of 
 being thus tempted, Beware of what you do. Have 
 compassion on the souls of your children. Grace is 
 better than gold. If God, in his providence, should 
 make you the steward of much of his goods, he can 
 bless you in the use of them. But if you forsake the 
 path of duty, and the place where you can do good, 
 for the sake of worldly gain or family pride, you will 
 grieve the Spirit of God, you will injure your own soul, 
 and will be a hindrance to the spirituality of the church 
 with which you may be connected. I pray you, do 
 not so wickedly. 
 
 Yours, as ever, in the war against church debts. 
 
 VV. R. 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 A second reason why some professing Christians 
 crowd into churches where they know thev can do but 
 little, if any, good, is for the sake of gain. 
 
 I met a gentleman some time ago, and asked him 
 how the work of the Lord prospered in the church of 
 
96 Church Debts. 
 
 which I supposed he was still a member. He replied, 
 '* I do not know. 1 have left that church, and have 
 joined another." " Why have you done so?" He said, 
 " It suits my business better." 
 
 I would here remark that he was doing, what the 
 world calls, a very good business. He was support- 
 ing his family well, and was laying up money, and is 
 now the owner of considerable property. There was 
 no necessity in the case for such a move. By remov- 
 ing from one church to another, he did not change the 
 place of his store. But his hope was, that by coming 
 in contact with a certain class of men in the church, 
 who had wealth, he might so far gain their confidence 
 as to make more money by the acquaintance. Keep- 
 ing this in view, he gets a certificate of dismission 
 from the pastor of one church, and is recommended 
 to the pastor of another as a brother in good and re- 
 gular standing. He is received. That church re- 
 joices in the addition of another member, and perhaps 
 boasts of their gain, while the church he has left 
 mourns over its loss. If they knew, however, the real 
 motives of the man for the change he has made, their 
 feelings would be the very reverse. 
 
 I mention this case, not because I suppose the thing is 
 of rare occurrence, but the contrary. Calvin said, in his 
 day, that "on all hands there is an abundance of osten- 
 tatious ceremonies, but sincerity of heart is rare." I fear 
 that the remark will apply with equal force to our times. 
 If the case referred to above be a specimen of the 
 feeling found in the churches, we need not be surprised 
 at the low state of piety, and the consequent heavy 
 debts which are upon the houses professedly dedicated 
 to God. There is an amount of hypocrisy exhibited, 
 and of deception played off on Church Sessions and 
 on churches, which deserve the severest rebuke. Look 
 at the matter: this man applies to his pastor for a cer- 
 tificate of dismission, to connect himself with some 
 other church. He must give a reason for his request, 
 unless he act like some church members, who slough 
 off, (as the physicians would say,) or who go off, in 
 
Why some are in the Church. 97 
 
 direct violation of their church engagements, without 
 any regular dismission, and are thus received by other 
 churches. In giving his reasons, he must, of course, 
 conceal the true reason, and leave the impression that 
 there is a prospect, where he is going, of his doing or 
 receiving more good. He is dismissed, and recom- 
 mended to a sister church. The session of that church 
 receive him ; he is welcomed as a brother. He at- 
 tends the house of God, engages in the duties that may 
 devolve on him; and while all around suppose he is 
 actuated by love to God, he is actuated by selfishness, 
 and is deceiving his fellow members. His constant 
 aim is to increase his worldly business. His connec- 
 tion with the church is only a means to attain that 
 end. Covetousness has now taken hold of his heart, 
 and he has left a place where he might have done 
 good, to be a curse to those where he has gone by the 
 exhibition of a worldly spirit. But "it suits his busi- 
 ness," and hence he is there. 
 
 This spirit manifests itself in another way. Some 
 church members act upon Franklin's advice, when he 
 said, "a penny saved is a penny made;" and hence 
 they crowd into large and wealthy churches, where 
 their aid is not needed, and save money by the opera- 
 tion. To make this matter plain, I will take a case 
 that is not a fancy sketch. Mr. Aliquis was a mem- 
 ber of a church in Philadelphia, where he was doing 
 good. The Lord had bestowed on him some wealth, 
 and he was often called upon, as a steward, to use it 
 for His glory. He ultimately began to feel that the 
 money he held in his hands was his own, and not his 
 Lord's. And although he had enough, and more than 
 enough, for his family, besides what he gave to the 
 cause of benevolence, he determined to unite with a 
 wealthy church, with the hope that he would be called 
 upon less frequently to aid the cause of his Redeemer, 
 than he was in his present situation. He did so ; and 
 now he gives a small amount, just enough to keep up 
 his standing in the church, and the rest he hoards up 
 for heirs, he knows not who. The church he has left 
 
98 Church Debts. 
 
 feels the loss of his contributions, while the church 
 where he is now does not need his aid. He is a cy- 
 pher in the church of God. It is true, he has the 
 glory of being in connection with a church where the 
 cause moves on, but no thanks to him. He receives 
 glory from man, but none from God. He is increas- 
 ing in riches; but Solomon says, "there is a sore evil 
 "which I have seen under the sun, viz.: riches kept for 
 the owners thereof, to their hurt," and he may find it 
 true in his case. 
 
 In conversing with a worthy man, who was doing 
 some good in his own church, but was not essential 
 to its prosperity, and who might do a great deal more 
 elsewhere, I said, Why do you not, for the sake of 
 your Redeemer, go to such a church, where your in- 
 fluence will be felt far and wide, and where you may 
 do infinitely more good than where you now are 1 He 
 replied, "I have often thought of it, but my wife will 
 not go." He gave his reasons for it, and they all 
 amounted to this — she would be among a different 
 class of people. But suppose they are not so rich or so 
 refined as some others, are not their souls equally va- 
 luable, and is there not a prospect of your doing far 
 more good there, and of your obtaining a brighter 
 crown of glory ? " That is true," said he ; " but still 
 it is so, and you cannot control the feelings of women 
 in these matters." 1 gave him to understand that I 
 thought he was acting like Adam in blaming Eve. He 
 was a greater sinner than his wife. 
 
 I need not dwell upon this subject any longer; but 
 I would ask, has it come to this, that church members 
 are to consult their own ease, in preference to the 
 glory of God, and yet maintain their standing in the 
 church 1 If it be so, who is to blame for this state of 
 things? A brother in the ministry has written me a 
 letter, in which he expresses the opinion, that the sin, 
 in this matter, does not lie at the door of the church 
 members alone. He shall speak for himself. He says: 
 
 " Brother R., this worldly spirit (of which you speak) 
 is not confined to laymen. Some ' teachers in Israel/ 
 
A Chapel-oJ -ease for Ex-Elders. 99 
 
 who ought to know better, and talk better, are strongly- 
 tinctured with it. In their estimation, churches not 
 strong in lucre are worse than useless appendages to 
 Presbyteries, and are regarded in the light of * poor 
 relations,' It has been more than once intimated, with 
 a smile, that they had better form alliances elsewhere, 
 with such denominations as operate principally among 
 the * humble classes' of society. With such men, it 
 matters not what may be the spiritual wants of a 
 neighborhood, or the prayers and piety of a weak 
 church located therein, or the number of the souls of 
 the poor converted there; if said church has not 
 enough money, and some to spare, it is deemed an 
 unprofitable concern, and had better die than live. I 
 speak what I know when I say, that there are those 
 who feel but littie interest for a weak church, whose 
 sole recommendation is the conversion and edification 
 of poor men. 
 
 ""Dear brother, in writing you this, I am not influ- 
 enced by that spirit of petty envy which sometimes 
 prejudices the poor against the rich, for, personally, I 
 have no reason to complain of poverty; but it is evi- 
 dently seen a worldly policy, a sordid feeling are pre- 
 vailing among some men, which should be rebuked, 
 because contrarv to the spirit of the gospel. 
 
 " Yours, &c, C. B." 
 
 In reference to this letter, I would say, in the lan- 
 guage of an aged Quaker, " this friend speaks my 
 mind." Yes, I am disposed to think that the evil lies 
 as much, if not more, in the teachers than in the taught. 
 If the church members were made to understand their 
 duty in this matter, when they unite with the church, 
 they would, I am persuaded, act differently. But this 
 do-nothing spirit in church members is, in many in- 
 stances, encouraged by ministers. Report says, and 
 I presume it is true, that there is a church in this land 
 where may be found some fifteen or twenty ex-elders, 
 who have laid aside their office pro tern., and are 
 crowded together as mere absorbents of the word. 
 When Napoleon opened the doors of a certain nun- 
 
100 Church Debts. 
 
 nery in Spain, ho turned out all the nuns, saying to 
 them, " Begone, you jades, and spin." Oh ! that some 
 Napoleon would arise in the church, and scourge the 
 slothful into activity, or else drive them out from the 
 temple of the Lord, for they do more harm than good, 
 and those who would do good they hinder. 
 
 Well, it may be asked, would you have such persons 
 to unite with feeble churches? By no means. But 
 we would have ministers raise their voice of warning 
 against such drones in the hive. If they cannot be 
 converted, and be led to do good, let them be cut off 
 from the communion of the church. But there are 
 some who would work, if there were room for them, 
 in the large and wealthy churches. Now the proper 
 course is for some brethren to leave those churches, 
 and unite with those that are feeble. This will afford 
 them the opportunity of doing more good, and it will 
 also make room for others to work, who would, but 
 cannot, and it would aid the feebler churches in sus- 
 taining themselves. This would bring Christian cha- 
 racter to a test, and we should then soon know who 
 is on the Lord's side, and who is not. 
 
 Immediately after my arrival at Bombay with my 
 brethren, the Mission held a meeting to decide on 
 some plan of distribution. It was thought that seven 
 missionaries were too many for that city, though it 
 contained more than200,000 people, while other large 
 towns had no missionary. Their plan was to be united 
 in heart and aim, but not in place. They did not con- 
 sult whether or not " the society of the Hindoos was 
 such as they had been accustomed to," or whether it 
 would "suit their worldly business better" to stay in 
 one place rather than another; but the simple question 
 was, how can we dispose of ourselves so as to do the 
 most good among the heathen? A plan was adopted, 
 and the mission families were divided. Now, if God 
 requires his people to deny themselves, and if the 
 church expect that missionaries and their families 
 should make sacrifices of comfort, of wealth, and of 
 refined and intellectual society, I should like to know 
 
Caste. 101 
 
 where so many professors of religion, in this city and 
 elsewhere, get their authority for crowding into large 
 and wealthy churches, to sit down at their ease, and 
 do nothing for God or the salvation of men? Are 
 there two Bibles? Are there two rules of life? Has 
 God given some of his people a kind of indulgence to 
 do nothing but hear the word of life, while others have 
 to bear the heat and the burden of the day ? Has He 
 allowed some to please themselves in all things, while 
 others, if they would be saved, must please Him? Are 
 there two plans of salvation? Is self-denial needful 
 only for a few, while others can hoard up their wealth, 
 and enter heaven too ? If God has given some of his 
 people wealth and knowledge, and if they are refined 
 in their manners, are they therefore to be released 
 from working in the vineyard of the Lord ? Alas ! 
 alas! that Christians should imbibe such notions of 
 caste, as to be, in fact, practical Hindoos in the mat- 
 ter of laboring personally for the good of others. The 
 Saviour was in good society in heaven, and yet he 
 was willing to instruct the ignorant, and to labor for 
 the good of the poor and the wretched in this sinful 
 world. What are we, that we should pride ourselves 
 upon our refinement or birth, and refuse to labor for 
 God? I have seen the haughty Brahmun turn aside, 
 Jest the shadow of a Shoodroo (a man of low caste) 
 falling on him, should defile him, and I have pitied the 
 deluded heathen; but when I see professing Christians 
 refuse to labor for God, because they imagine they 
 have more sense and refinement than their neighbors, 
 and when they refuse to contribute, according to their 
 ability, to redeem the houses of their God, which their 
 pride has built at a useless expense, I am forced to 
 ask, can this be the spirit of Christianity ? Can such 
 persons possess the spirit of Christ ? Can such con- 
 duct be pleasing to God? Can such persons be travel- 
 ing the narrow way to heaven? 
 
 Yours, as ever, in the war against church debts. 
 
 W. R. 
 
102 Church Debts. 
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 A third reason why some professing Christians re- 
 fuse to aid feeble churches, in their efforts to advance 
 the cause of Christ, is the fact that they have become 
 "weary in well doing," and are stricken with the dis- 
 ease of " itching ears." 
 
 I met a Christian man in the street one day, and 
 after the usual salutations, the following conversation 
 ensued : 
 
 How does the work of the Lord prosper in your 
 church now? 
 
 I know not ; I have left the church. 
 
 To what church have you gone ? 
 
 To Mr. Blank's church. 
 
 Why did you go there 1 You can do no good in 
 that church. 
 
 I have not gone there for that purpose. I have been 
 doing good for many years, and I have become tired. 
 I want to get some now. 
 
 I fear you will not profit much by the change ; for 
 those who refuse to labor for God, do not prosper in 
 spiritual things. 
 
 Well, I think I have done my share of labor in fee- 
 ble churches ; let some others try it. I mean to rest 
 awhile. 
 
 We parted with a mutual good-bye. 
 
 The next time I saw this man, he was loud in his 
 praises of the sermons of his new minister. 1 lately 
 heard that he has removed to another church, because 
 it suits his business better. 
 
 Take another specimen of a similar feeling. 
 
 Good morning, Mr. A. You are just the man who 
 
 could do great good in the church, if you 
 
 would go. (The field was spread out before him, and 
 he was urged to engage in the work of the Lord.) 
 
 Mr. A. I acknowledge that there is a prospect of 
 doing more good there than where I am ; but it is so 
 far from my dwelling. I live in . 
 
Truth will out. 103 
 
 True, that is a great distance for a Philadelphia!! to 
 go to church; but it is not more than fifteen minutes' 
 walk, and you walk farther than that every morning 
 to your counting-house. 
 
 Mr. A. I do not care for the walk for myself; but 
 it is too far for my family. My children could not 
 get to Sabbath school in time, and my wife's health is 
 not good. It would be too far for her. 
 
 As to her health, you are the best judge of that. 
 But don't she go to market, and also a-shopping occa- 
 sionally'? 
 
 Mr. A. Yes, she attends to these matters. 
 
 Then, my word for it, she walks much farther than 
 the distance I speak of. When ladies go a-shopping, 
 a few squares are of no consequence in their view. As 
 to your children, the distance is nothing for them ; they 
 need exercise. Only give them their breakfast early 
 enough, and send them off, and they will be at school 
 in time. You would lose nothing on the score of 
 preaching ; and then the joy of doing something for the 
 cause of Christ would more than compensate you for 
 any self-denial exercised. 
 
 Mr. A. The gospel, I doubt not, is preached there; 
 but then I fear Mrs. A. would object to the distance. 
 
 Well, if she could not go always, she could go oc- 
 casionally; and her self-denial, in this respect, would 
 encourage others who have better health to unite with 
 you in this good work. And as a good wife, she would 
 be willing to aid you in doing more good in the church. 
 I think she would go, if you would present the case pro- 
 perly before her mind. What do you think 1 
 
 Mr. A. Perhaps she might. But, to be candid with 
 you, the people there are not such as I have been in 
 the habit of associating with. And I do not wish to 
 go. 
 
 Oh ! now I understand you ; you speak plainly. And 
 (laying my hand upon his shoulder) all I have to say 
 is this, if the Saviour had been influenced by such feel- 
 ings, when on the earth, you would never be saved. 
 Good morning. 
 
104 Church Debts. 
 
 So we parted. I never saw this professing Chris- 
 tian afterward, to speak with him, but I watched his 
 course. He soon after {eft his church, to unite with 
 a still richer one. He was of no use there. He grew 
 dissatisfied, and removed to another place, where he 
 heard preaching less frequently than formerly, but 
 where it suited his business better. As to the good he 
 did in advancing the cause of Christ, it is not mine 
 to say. His Master is his Judge. (N. B. He shortly 
 after met with great pecuniary losses, and is .now 
 dead.) 
 
 In conversing with an intelligent man, who had 
 been in the church some eight or ten years, I urged 
 him to unite with his brethren who were doing good 
 in a destitute portion of the Lord's vineyard. But he 
 positively refused, and the only reason given was, it 
 was too great a sacrifice for him to lose one sermon 
 that his pastor might preach. 
 
 Well, we need not be surprised that churches are 
 erected, and not paid for, since such a spirit prevails so 
 extensively in the churches. Pride, caste, convenience, 
 gratification, good society, peculiar associations, and 
 covetousness sway the minds of many Christians in their 
 choice of a place of worship, far more than the simple 
 questions, " How and where can I most glorify God V 9 
 I have been in the ministry now twenty-five years, 
 and I have never asked a man or a woman, whether 
 converted under my ministry or not, to unite with us, 
 if I thought they could do more good elsewhere. Nor 
 have I ever asked a man to stay and labor with me,, 
 if he felt he could do more good elsewhere. On the 
 contrary, my uniform practice is to say to them, Do 
 not come with us, unless you feel, in the providence of 
 God, that you can do more good with us than else- 
 where. Nor do I ever refuse for a moment to dismiss 
 a member who may feel that God would be more glo- 
 rified by his laboring elsewhere. Every man is bound 
 to ask himself the question, Where can I most glorify 
 God? and to act accordingly. He has no right to 
 bury his Lord's talent in the earth. H[e is to glorify 
 
The Consequence. 105 
 
 God by bearing much fruit. And sad will be the 
 death-bed scene of the man who lives for his own 
 gratification, and refuses to do what he might for his 
 Lord and Master. 
 
 When T look at the number of church members who 
 are crowded together in some of the churches, when I 
 think of the wealth they possess, of the influence they 
 might exert in saving perishing men, and that they are 
 absolutely in the way of each other, often quarrelling 
 with one another, and, in fact, stumbling blocks in the 
 •way of sinners coming to God — I feel exceedingly sad. 
 Multitudes upon multitudes, all around them, are per- 
 ishing for lack of vision, and no man of them cares for 
 their souls enough to build a house for God, pay for it, 
 and support the gospel, so that they may be saved. 
 They might do it, if they would. There are many 
 men and women in our churches who could, without 
 losing a meal by the effort, build a neat house of wor- 
 ship, and support a minister of the gospel, and thus be 
 the means of saving many souls. But they choose not 
 to dispose of their Lord's money in that way. Well, 
 \vhat is the consequence? They will not labor to 
 make men good; men grow worse and worse. These 
 men of wealth in the church are taxed the heavier by 
 the government to aid in punishing crime ; their pro- 
 perty is sacrificed by the faithlessness of the wicked ; 
 and in the end the church loses more through the in- 
 fluence of crime, than she would need to spend in re- 
 forming and saving these sons of Belial. But we have 
 high authority for this kind of economy. Our govern- 
 ment spent about forty millions of dollars, besides a 
 multitude of lives, to shoot a few Indians; whereas, 
 half a million spent in instructing them in the fear of 
 God, would have saved all this waste of property and 
 life — this ruin of souls. And now, again, she has spent 
 more than one hundred millions of dollars, and thou- 
 sands of precious lives, for a little contemptible glory 
 in Mexico, when she might have had all this, and far. 
 more, for one-tenth of the sum. 
 
 Rut where is the hope that things will be better % 
 9* 
 
106 Church Debts. 
 
 The church has lost the spirit of the apostles, and is 
 but a stripling, when compared with her former giant 
 greatness. I knew a man who stood high as a Chris- 
 tian in a church in this city. He chose to leave it, 
 and to unite with another wealthy church. He did 
 so. He could not find a pew that suited him ; and 
 for six months he waited for somebody in the church 
 to die or remove, so that he might be accommodated. 
 He did obtain a pew, and, in six months more, he too 
 was dead. What account will such a Christian be 
 able to give to the Great Head of the Church of the 
 last year of his life? But why censure such men, 
 when we find similar feelings in some who are set 
 apart to be teachers in Israel? It often happens that 
 a young man has his license in his pocket to preach 
 the gospel, and yet remains at home, in hope of a call 
 to some congregation where he can find a good and 
 large support, instead of going forth, in the fear of the 
 Lord, to labor in the vineyard of his Master, where- 
 ever a door may be opened to him. If the ministers 
 of Christ, who do conscientiously labor for their Mas- 
 ter, would frown upon such conduct wherever exhib- 
 ited, and if they would so preach as to urge their peo- 
 ple to be doers of the word, and not hearers only, we 
 should soon see our churches delivered from the curse 
 of church debts. Yea, more, we should soon see the 
 whole land dotted with churches, erected to the honor 
 of the true God, paid for, and full of devout worship- 
 pers; the ministers of Christ supported and encouraged 
 in their work, and the word of the Lord would have 
 free course and be glorified. 
 
 Again let me ask you, my Christian readers, are 
 you glorifying God, in the station you occupy in the 
 church, as much as you might do in some other part 
 of it? Could you not alone, or by uniting with a few 
 others, easily deliver this or that house of God from 
 debt? Could you not easily build a house to God, 
 and support a good minister of Christ to preach the 
 gospel in it? Have you not lost already, by the fail- 
 ure of banks, or houses, or individuals, vastly more 
 
The Recapitulation. 107 
 
 than you have ever given to pay off the debts of God's 
 houses, or to erect new ones? Does not God require 
 more at your hand than He receives 1 Will you then 
 do what you can to save the Church of Christ from a 
 lasting disgrace 1 There is a Protestant church now 
 in this city loaded with a debt of some $10,000, or 
 more, and if the sum be not soon paid, it must pass 
 over into the hands of the Pope.* Then will the citi- 
 zens of this city be permitted to witness the farce of 
 purifying, with smoke, and water, and Latin prayers, 
 the sanctuary of our God, to make way for the idola- 
 try of the mass, and the abominations of the confes- 
 sion ! And yet there are men ecclesiastically con- 
 nected with it who are groaning under the weight of 
 their wealth, and who must soon die and leave it all, 
 and still they gaze upon it with cold indifference. Oh! 
 thou blessed Spirit, that moved upon the hearts of 
 apostles and reformers, return, and leave not thy 
 church to utter desolation ! 
 
 I am yours, as ever, in the war against church 
 debts. * W. R. 
 
 LETTER XXI. 
 
 THE RECAPITULATION". 
 
 Lest I should weary my readers by my prolixity 
 on this subject, I will bring these letters to a close. 
 The subject is by no means exhausted. The half has 
 not yet been said, that might be said, of the withering 
 curse of church debts. But I will leave it for abler 
 pens to present the evil, in some other form, before 
 the churches, with the hope that the consciences of 
 those who are interested in this matter will not slum- 
 ber over the subject, as in days past. 
 
 * It has gone into the hands of the Komanists. 
 
108 Church Debte* 
 
 As some of my readers may have forgotten some 
 of the ideas presented in these letters, I have thought 
 that it might not be amiss to give a versified recapitu- 
 lation of the whole matter, with some additional 
 thoughts. I do so, not because I wish to exhibit any 
 specimen of sublimity in poetry. Those who look for 
 this may rest assured that they will be disappointed. 
 I am no poet, and aim not to wear a poet's laurels. 
 But as it is a relief, at times, to leave the monotonous 
 motion of a car for the less rapid, though more pleas- 
 ing, goings of even a homely carriage, so I feel it to 
 be in the present case. I promise my readers I shall 
 not trouble them much longer with either poetry or 
 prose. 
 
 I feel thankful for the encouragement I have had 
 from those who have said, " Go on." Whether the 
 predictions of my brethren, who have said, "Go on,, 
 but you will do no good," will be fulfilled, remain to be 
 seen. I am unwilling yet to believe that the Christian 
 church cares less for the glory of God, and the churches 
 of their Saviour, than the heathen do for their temples. 
 If, however, they do not speedily redeem the Lord's 
 house from the curse of a debt, which now rests upon 
 it, they will show that they love themselves more than 
 the cause of Christ, and value their own houses more 
 than they do the house of their God. 
 
 Sad times, indeed, we then shall see, 
 
 When saints grow covetous and cold ; 
 Then Pride shall conquer Piety, 
 
 And Grace resign her sway to Gold. 
 This cursed love of sordid dust 
 
 Doth mar the Christian name as yet; 
 It grieves the Spirit by distrust, 
 
 And blasts his churches with a debt. 
 
A Dialogue. 10$ 
 
 A DIALOGUE ON THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 Mr. A. calls upon his friend B., and finds him in 
 his room, and at leisure. Mr. B. rises, and accosts 
 his friend thus: 
 
 Mr.B. Welcome, dear sir; come, take a seat; 
 And, since we do so seldom meet, 
 Come, let us speak of heavenly things, 
 For such discourse true pleasure brings. 
 Then, first, (for surely thou canst tell,) 
 Say, is it with the churches welH 
 Does piety within them thrive? 
 Do Christians after glory strive? 
 
 Mr. A. I would, dear friend, that I could give, 
 An answer in the affirmative. 
 Oh! that 1 could sincerely tell 
 That with the churches "all is well!" 
 In some, devotion's flame is bright, 
 Diffusing round a sacred light ; 
 And now and then a sinner turns, 
 Forsakes his sins, and o'er them mourns. 
 Some manifest, by trifling talk, 
 They're turned from Christ, nor with Him walk. 
 The world has captivated them; 
 They've ceased its deadly tide to stem,* 
 The wise with foolish virgins sleep, 
 And seldom o'er their follies weep; 
 But God preserves a remnant still, 
 Who always aim to do His will. 
 The world is courted and pursued, 
 As if it were the only good ; 
 The church grows rich in sordid pelf, 
 And seeks to gratify herself; 
 Christians abound in wealth and ease, 
 And many live themselves to please. 
 I oft feel sad, that worldliness 
 Usurps the place of godliness, 
 
110 Church Debts. 
 
 Mr.B. I'm well aware the world is bad, 
 And pious men may well be sad; 
 But still, I pray you, grieve not so — 
 That does but little good, you know. 
 E'er since the fall, the world has been 
 Groaning beneath a weight of sin ; 
 The wheat and tares together grow, 
 And thus does God his patience show. 
 The day will come, I hope 'tis near, 
 When our Redeemer shall appear: 
 Till then, we cannot hope to see 
 The church from imperfection free. 
 The church is far, I'll freely grant, 
 From what she was, or what we want ; 
 But still she is the only Light 
 That keeps this world from endless night. 
 
 Mr, A. I so believe. But might not she 
 Walk in her pristine purity ? 
 Say, what doth hinder now her way 
 That was not in th' apostles' day '? 
 Idolatry did them surround, 
 And everywhere did vice abound ; 
 Yet still corruption they withstood — 
 A firm, devoted brotherhood. 
 Their very lives they held not dear, 
 Confessed they were but pilgrims here; 
 Their all was on God's altar laid ; 
 Their lives confirmed the vows they made. 
 With Christians now it is not so ; 
 The mass seem led by empty show. 
 In many things, as living, dress, 
 They manifest great worldliness. 
 They imitate a Chinese priest, 
 Who vowed to give his god a feast 
 He slew a hog — gave him the soul. 
 But for himself he kept the whole. 
 He reason'd thus : " The gods above 
 Don't feast on things that mortals love; 
 
The Example. Ill 
 
 As spirits, they on spirits feed, 
 But food more solid mortals need. 
 I'll give my god the soul ; for that 
 Is far more dear to him than fat. 
 The soul he never will refuse, 
 But flesh and blood he cannot use. 
 Thus, while upon the soul he'll feast, 
 I'll have the carcase of the beast; 
 And thus shall both be satisfied, 
 While both are fed and gratified." 
 In Christian lands some do the same, 
 And yet retain the Christian name: 
 They give to God what they can spare, 
 And keep for self the largest share. 
 
 Mr.B. I must confess, 'tis sometimes so, 
 
 But then the case is rare, you know: 
 I still must think that, after all, 
 The censure does too heavy fall. 
 Concerning some, your words are true, 
 And yet they seem like Christians too; 
 That all are so, I can't but doubt, 
 Until you clearly make it out. 
 
 Mr. A. I don't affirm that ev'ry man 
 
 Withholds from God just what he can; 
 
 But this I say : there are but few 
 
 Who give to God what is His due. 
 
 Suppose that, for example's sake, 
 
 You do our city churches take : 
 
 Is one in ten redeemed from debt? 
 
 If so, I have to learn it yet. 
 
 Will any man pretend to say, 
 
 That all these debts they cannot pay? 
 
 They can redeem them, if they would; 
 
 Yea, more, their conscience says they should. 
 
 Then why is not God's house set free? 
 
 The cause is not in poverty. 
 
 Ah! no; but this, our deep disgrace, 
 
 Arises from the want of grace. 
 
112 Church Debts. 
 
 These debts on churches are a curse, 
 Which always grow from bad to worse; 
 From worse to worse they onward go, 
 Like an Apocalyptic woe. 
 
 Mi\B. I cannot here with you agree — 
 A debt may oft a blessing be. 
 
 Mr. A. What ! a blessing ! And think you so ? 
 Do let me, then, your reasons know. 
 
 Mr. B. Perhaps my language is too strong, 
 But still 1 think that you are wrong. 
 I cannot think that ev'ry case 
 Of debt betokens want of grace; 
 Or that a church, by debt oppress'd, 
 Can never in her work be bless'd. 
 The fact is plain, that churches do 
 Still keep in debt, and prosper too. 
 
 Mr. A. That they're in debt, that fact I know; 
 But that they prosper you must show: 
 You'll find that work is hard indeed — 
 But I will hear, so now proceed. 
 
 Mr. B. I will. And, first, I wish to say, 
 
 They're " bonds of union" in our day. 
 
 Mr. A. Tremendous bonds they are, I know — 
 Most galling bonds of sin and woe. 
 
 Mr.B. Have patience, man, and I'll explain; 
 If you'll allow, I'll make it plain. 
 
 Mr. A. Most certainly: I hope you will 
 Go on, dear sir ; I'll now be still. 
 
 Mr.B. The debts on churches, I maintain, 
 Bind men together like a chain, 
 Which doth the people firmly hold — 
 Especially when made of gold. 
 
SALE OF PEWS. 
 
 Page 113. 
 
The Sale of Pews, 113 
 
 Their operation, when you see, 
 You will perhaps, agree with me. 
 For instance, here are eight or ten, 
 Or more or less, of Christian men, 
 Who now agree a church to build, 1 
 And hope, of course, it will be filled. 
 Each one pays in a fixed amount, 
 Of which he keeps a strict account ; 
 But, mark ! this money is but lent — 
 It yields a gain of six per cent. 
 The church is up; it must be paid ; 
 A price upon the pews is laid. 
 A day is fixed to sell the pews; 
 The daily papers give the news ; 
 The people come — the auctioneer, 
 Within God's house, does then appear. 
 The crowd the costly pulpit view, 
 The organ, seats, and cushions too. 
 
 THE SALE OF PEWS. 
 
 '• Who'll buy this pew?" the salesman cries; 
 " Location good — a pleasant size. 
 
 Two hundred — fifty — three — go on — 
 
 Three fifty — four — five — going — gone. 
 
 Who'll have the next? Best in the church — 
 
 Bid up — don't leave us in the lurch, 
 
 'Tis gone. The next ? They must be sold. 
 
 Come, gentlemen, don't mind your gold ; 
 
 Money enough, when you are gone, 
 
 For sons-in-law to revel on. 
 
 Three hundred bid? Well done, I say ; 
 
 We'll make a splendid sale to-day. 
 
 It can't be beat — the stock is good — 
 
 First rale — I see I'm understood. 
 
 Bid up! Now show that you're aiive; 
 
 Three fifty — four — four fifty — five — 
 
 Five hundred dollars for this pew — 
 
 Going at five — a bargain, too — 
 
 'Tis gone. It is yours, Mr. Great; 
 
 I do you, sir, congratulate. 
 10 
 
114 Church Debts. 
 
 All now are sold, except two more — 
 Those in the corner, near the door ; 
 But since they're kept for charity, 
 I've been advised to let them be. 
 For your attendance thanks are due; 
 My thanks I give, kind sirs, to you." 
 
 Thus, by this plan, (the very best,) 
 The principal and interest 
 Of money lent can be repaid ; 
 It yields the church substantial aid. 
 You see, the man who owns the pew, 
 If he should choose, can sell it too. 
 If things succeed, there is a chance 
 The pew in value will advance. 
 There is our neighbor, Mr. K., 
 Who sold his pew the other day ; 
 Four hundred dollars he had paid — 
 He sold the pew for six, and made 
 A handsome profit by the trade. 
 The furniture he sold by lot, 
 And more than what it cost he got. 
 I do not say that there are any 
 Who join the church to make a penny; 
 But in a case like this, you see, 
 A pew is not bad property. 
 
 It seems to me quite fortunate 
 That pews escape a tax from state; 
 Most other things are taxable: 
 Hence pews all other stocks excel. 
 When people can this understand, 
 This stock will be in great demand. 
 Now, after all, without pretence, 
 The money has the influence. 
 The man who has such ties as these 
 May not be quite so hard to please; 
 His pew he will not sacrifice; 
 Thus to the church the man it ties. 
 Some churches have an interest, 
 Which they can pay as suits them best. 
 
Caste. 115 
 
 Indeed, the ladies often raise, 
 By fairs, and sales, and other ways, 
 Enough to put them out of fear, 
 And push them on from year to year. 
 And now, my friend, 1 hope that we, 
 About church debts, at length agree; 
 That they are blessings, I maintain ; 
 Say, don't you think the case is plain? 
 
 Mr. A. I thank you, sir, for what you've said; 
 You have the subject clearer made. 
 The case is plain ; debts are a curse ; 
 In vain you'll search to find a worse. 
 Your plan is hateful to my mind; 
 It seems iniquity refined. 
 Suppose that now Bartholomew, 
 Or James, or John, should need a pew; 
 Or if Mary, Jesus' mother, 
 Should desire to have another; 
 Say, would their piety and grace 
 Secure for them their proper place? 
 Or would you say, pews must be sold, 
 And can't be had without the gold ? 
 
 Mr. B. A poor man is a poor affair, 
 In money matters, anywhere ; 
 We much prefer, I'm free to say, 
 The man who can the money pay. 
 His money will secure a place, 
 Which can't be had alone for grace. 
 In many churches seats are free; 
 (For instance, in the gallery;) 
 So, if the poor will choose to come, 
 They'll find " above" enough of room. 
 Now don't suppose we shut the door 
 'Gainst any man who may be poor ; 
 We do not so ; we only say, 
 That gold, at times, does grace outweigh. 
 
 Mr. A. Your plan I understand at last: 
 You have adopted Hindoo caste* 
 
116 Church Debts. 
 
 They, by their birth, their caste adjust; 
 
 But here 'tis done by sordid dust. 
 
 To keep up caste a church is built — 
 
 A debt's incurred, and also guilt ; 
 
 Some saint or sinner must be found, 
 
 To whom you mortgage house and ground ; 
 
 You borrow largely, and you say, 
 
 " We're safe, if we the int'rest pay." 
 
 The principal you leave to be 
 
 A curse to your posterity. 
 
 To pay that off, you ne'er intend ; 
 
 This is the truth, I apprehend. 
 
 But now, the interest to raise, 
 
 You must resort to various ways: 
 
 A sale is made, to aid the cause, 
 
 Of fancy trifles and gewgaws ; 
 
 The brain is tortured to devise 
 
 Some whim to aid the enterprise; 
 
 Nothing comes wrong — 'tis just the thing, 
 
 Provided it does money bring. 
 
 Men without grace you try to please, 
 
 And so you make of them Trustees. 
 
 God's enemies are courted now — 
 
 Religion to the world must bow ; 
 
 As he that borrows is the slave 
 
 Of him that lends, perhaps a knave, 
 
 Christ's church must bow to knavery, 
 
 In base and abject slavery ; 
 
 For, as regards the mortgagee, 
 
 A foe to Christ he oft may be. 
 
 If this be so, the wicked's rod 
 
 Then rests upon the house of God. 
 
 Say, was it thus the Jews of old 
 Lent out their silver and their gold? 
 Did they their money thus invest, 
 And charge Jehovah interest? 
 Did not the people promptly bring 
 To God a free-will offering ? 
 They gave Jehovah first their heart, 
 Then set their wealth to him apart ; 
 
Scriptural Mode of building Churches. 117 
 
 They brought of every kind of stuff, 
 At God's command, more than enough 
 Of silver, gold, and brass, and wood; 
 And soon, in glorious beauty, stood, 
 Built freely, and with one accord, 
 A tabernacle to the Lord. 
 
 They reared the Temple free from debt — 
 There God in mercy with them met; 
 The holy people worshipped Him, 
 As seen between the cherubim. 
 In after days, that house they made 
 A place of merchandise and trade; 
 But though their sins were manifold, 
 Jehovah's house they never sold: 
 This sin of sins remained to be 
 A blot on Christianity. 
 Oh ! deep disgrace ! a Christian sells 
 The house in which his Saviour dwells! 
 Go, search the earth, from east to west, 
 And every clime by men possessed — 
 Among them all, you'll find not one 
 Where such iniquity is done. 
 
 Mr.B. But why refer us to the Jews? 
 
 You know they've customs we don't use. 
 We've nothing now to do with them, 
 Since they our Saviour did condemn; 
 I say again, we've nought to do 
 With Jewish law — we have the New. 
 
 Mr. A. I can't agree ; but, for the sake 
 Of argument, the New I'll take. 
 I pray thee, then, show me the plan 
 On which the Christian church began; 
 If they pursued the plan you do, 
 Then I'll confess the truth's with you. 
 We both can take them as our guide; 
 Let them this question then decide. 
 10* 
 
118 Church Debts. 
 
 Mr.B. This seems but fair, I must confess, 
 And in tbis plan shall acquiesce ; 
 But yet we can't make every man, 
 In everything, pursue their plan. 
 
 Mr. A. Our error can't be very great, 
 If we their conduct imitate ; 
 Their principles will stand the test, 
 For, I assure you, they're the best ; 
 And, notwithstanding all our show, 
 We'd better to the apostles go ; 
 They may not all our plans commend, 
 But their's are wisest in the end. 
 
 Mr. B. What course did they pursue, to build 
 
 Their churches, and to have them filled? 
 I feel quite anxious now to know, 
 And, if you can, I hope you'll show. 
 
 Mr. A. At first they worshipped where they could; 
 An upper room, a cave, a wood, 
 A desert mount, or open air, 
 Witnessed their fervent worship there. 
 To build their churches, I've to learn 
 That e'er it gave them much concern. 
 On saving souls they were intent ; 
 Their thoughts were to that object bent; 
 They met for prayers at Christ's command — 
 A faithful, firm, devoted band. 
 They felt that they must greatly err, 
 Unless they had the Comforter. 
 Ten days and nights they strove in prayer, 
 That God might show His presence there. 
 Their prayer was heard. The God of grace 
 Then with his glory filled the place ; 
 A sound like rushing, mighty wind 
 Filled all the house— o'erpowered each mind. 
 In glorious form the Spirit came, 
 Like cloven tongues of lambent flame; 
 And with his grace each spirit filled, 
 Like gentle dew from heaven distilled.. 
 
The Apostles' Plan. 119 
 
 Thus qualified, they go to teach 
 The nations, and the gospel preach ; 
 With logic, fired by love, they show 
 The way t' escape from endless woe; 
 By gifts unswayed, by frowns unawed, 
 They sought alone to please their God. 
 The people prayed, God's servants preached, 
 And multitudes the gospel reached ; 
 In penitential grief they all 
 Upon the Lord for mercy call ; 
 Jehovah speaks their sins forgiven — 
 His Spirit seals them heirs of heaven. 
 The infant church thus daily grew 
 In numbers, and in graces too. 
 • Those blissful days seemed coming on, 
 When Satan's power shall all be gone, 
 And Earth, redeemed, her glory gain, 
 Beneath Messiah's peaceful reign. 
 
 Mr. B. I hope you don't pretend to say 
 That any churches, in our day, 
 Reject the Blessed Comforter, 
 Or do their gold to grace prefer? 
 
 Mr. A. I've often thought, I must confess, 
 
 That churches show great worldliness. 
 I do not say that they reject 
 The Spirit's aid; but they expect 
 They can a better plan pursue, 
 Than what the apostles used to do. 
 
 Mr. B. Why, think you so? I've always thought 
 That from the apostles we had got 
 The plan that is most rational — 
 By far the best, and scriptural 
 Our ministers, at any rate, 
 The plan, I judge, do approbate; 
 And if 'tis wrong, they ought to know, 
 And to the church a better show* 
 
120 Church Debts. 
 
 Mr. A. I've sketched the path the apostles trod 
 In building up the church of God — 
 I think, with candor, you'll admit, 
 That bless'd results have followed it. 
 If Christians had that course pursued, 
 They'd done incalculable good. 
 Too much on men of wealth and pride, 
 Instead of God, they have relied ; 
 The sad result you can't but know — 
 *Tis manifest where'er you go. 
 Oh ! that I could a mantle cast 
 O'er present sins, and o'er the past ! 
 But this I dare not — cannot do, 
 And to the church be faithful too. 
 
 • 
 The churches now God's plan reverse, 
 And hence their debts — this standing curse. 
 At first a costly house they build, 
 And then they strive to have it filled; 
 It matters not, it seems to me, 
 If saints or sinners they should be. 
 The thing that rests with greatest weight 
 Upon the body corporate, 
 (Or you may name them, if you please, 
 The Board of Elders and Trustees,) 
 Is not the saving souls from woe, 
 But how the church in wealth may grow; 
 Why thus they act, the reason's plain: 
 A debt doth on the church remain. 
 
 A minister, whose eloquence 
 Will draw the men of influence, 
 Must next be called and settled there, 
 And this is done without much prayer. 
 In olden times, the church would meet 
 In prayer before the mercy-seat, 
 And supplicate her risen Lord, 
 That He a pastor would afford ; 
 But, in our day, it is not so; 
 Now, Elders to Advisers go. 
 
Minister called. 121 
 
 They state their ease, and ask that they 
 Would send a man without delay. 
 " Observe !" they say ; " the man must be 
 Of great respectability; 
 He must be right in politics, 
 And keep his eye on heretics ; 
 A knowing man, without pretence; 
 A man of real eloquence ; 
 And 'tis desirable that he 
 Should be astute, and a D. D. ; 
 In travell'd lore, refined display 
 To none be second in his day. 
 His sermons must be full of sense, 
 Showing superior excellence : 
 Our folks are critics, and require 
 That kind of preaching all admire. 
 One other thing we wish to say : 
 We've an enormous debt to pay; 
 And pay that debt we never can, 
 Unless we have just such a man. 
 We need the man ; pray, don't forget — 
 The man who'll get us out of debt." 
 
 And now these kind Advisers write 
 To Mr. Black or Mr. White; 
 The glories of the place reveal, 
 But carefully the debt conceal. 
 Allured by what, I cannot say, 
 They leave their flocks, and haste away. 
 They're doing good, but think they will 
 A more important station fill ; 
 Or that their talents, if revealed, 
 Would gain for them a wider field. 
 Each candidate appears, and tries, 
 By sundry means, to win the prize; 
 Ere long they'll find the prize, indeed, 
 Is something like the Indian's steed: 
 " He's hard to catch, and when he's caught, 
 The creature is just good for naught." 
 The phantom let these men pursue, 
 And listen while 1 speak what's true. 
 
122 Church Debts. 
 
 A certain church (no matter where). 
 Had long enjoyed a pastor's care; 
 At last they found, " He's not the man 
 To suit the times, or meet our plan." 
 He was dismissed ; and now a host 
 Came hov'ring round t' obtain the post, 
 Like bees in summer 'round a flower, 
 Which would its sweetness all devour, 
 Or as the birds on Malabar, 
 Which scent the Parsee from afar, 
 And hasten there, with claws and bill, 
 Their hungry crops with flesh to fill;* 
 So, in this case, the crowd is led 
 To cringe, for sake of being fed. 
 The Angels of the Churches now 
 Before the golden calf must bow. 
 Oh ! deep disgrace, that they're for sale, 
 And highest bidders can prevail ! 
 
 The test-day comes for candidates ; 
 Each patiently his turn awaits. 
 One now begins; he sings — he prays; 
 Things new, and old, a,nd good he says; 
 The others, full of rivalship, 
 Display alike their workmanship. 
 There sit the people, old and young, 
 Of pious heart or impious tongue ; 
 The friends of God, and also foes ; 
 The man that much or little knows ; 
 The rich, the poor, the bad, the good. 
 The thing, it seems, is understood 
 That custom, now, does authorize 
 Such Christless ones to criticize 
 God's messages of love to man, 
 And thus pervert the gospel plan. 
 
 * The dead bodies of the Parseea, in Bombay, are laid in the 
 " towers of silence" on Malabar hill, so that the vultures and ravens 
 may devour them. 
 
The Object. 123 
 
 The hearing o'er, they now decide, 
 For they the candidates have tried. 
 The point before them now is this : 
 Not who shall lead their souls to bliss; 
 Nor who shall most of Jesus tell, 
 And save their fellow-men from hell ; 
 Nor who shall best God's truth unfold: 
 But which of them can get most gold. 
 This is the object, after all, 
 Which sways in making out the call. 
 The thing is base as base can be ; 
 'Tis consummate hypocrisy. 
 
 Mr.B. Hold here, friend A.! Not quite so fast, 
 Or I'm afraid you'll lose your caste. 
 The people here are not Hindoos, 
 Nor will they approbate your views; 
 'Tis probable that they pursue 
 What conscience says they ought to do. 
 Our moneyed men, in church or state, 
 Who see their gold accumulate, 
 Don't wish that you should trouble them, 
 Or any of their plans condemn. 
 The pastor's business is to preach — 
 Their motives he should ne'er impeach ; 
 And if he would his church retain, 
 He'd better from such things abstain. 
 There's nothing which the people hold 
 With firmer grasp than glitt'ring gold; 
 And when people pay for preachers, 
 They want, of course, first-rate teachers. 
 When money's paid, or even lent, 
 They look for an equivalent. 
 One thing, I think, you can't deny : 
 The preacher ought to edify 
 The church, and obstacles remove, 
 And then the people will improve; 
 Therefore, 'tis right that they should get 
 The man who'll bring them out of debt 
 
124 Church Debts. 
 
 You have described a fancy sketch, 
 I judge, unless the proof you fetch. 
 
 Mr. A. For fancy sketches, I've no tact; 
 I deal, dear sir, in sober fact. 
 I could give names, but then I fear 
 At once jWll say, " You're too severe." 
 I'll give you facts — I think that best — 
 And leave you then to guess the rest. 
 Concerning caste, I've none to lose; 
 And, as regards the poor Hindoos, 
 They're not as bad as Christians yet — 
 They've not a temple now in debt ! 
 And, as to conscience in the case, 
 There's just as little as there's grace. 
 The fact is plain, that pride controls 
 The churches, more than love of souls. 
 If Mr. Dives should appear 
 Within the church but once a year, 
 Or if, perchance, he'd buy a pew, 
 Yet still his worldliness pursue, 
 The thing would make a greater noise 
 Than if a score of girls or boys, 
 In humble life, should turn from sin, 
 And should a life of faith begin. 
 
 Two things this fact does clearly show 
 The first, that piety is low; 
 The second is, that worldliness 
 Is more esteemed than godliness. 
 Some welcome Dives for his gold, 
 Because it does the church uphold; 
 Others rejoice to have him there — 
 'Tis not because he'll lead in prayer — 
 But 'tis because they hope they'll be 
 In quite " genteel society," 
 One is glad because his daughter, 
 Like a lambkin for the slaughter, 
 May be caressed a little while, 
 And end her days, perhaps, in style { 
 
A Bond of Union. 125 
 
 And there are some whose joys are high, 
 Because they think redemption's nigh ; 
 Not of his soul— that they Forget, 
 But— that he'll help them out of debt! 
 And thus it is, that Pride's caress'd, 
 While humble Piety's depress'd, 
 Christ and his cause are both despised — 
 At Mammon's shrine they're sacrificed. 
 
 From what I've said, I judge, 'twill be 
 Sometime before we can agree ; 
 Yet, still I'll wait to hear from you, 
 What farther good these debts can do. 
 
 Mr.B. If not convinc'd from what I've said, 
 And from the light that has been shed, 
 Upon the blessing of a debt, 
 (This charming Christian amulet,) 
 I think 'tis likely I cannot 
 Present to you a single thought 
 That would convert vou to my view, 
 But still I'll try what* I can do. 
 
 As you request, I'll now proceed ; 
 But first, I must, in truth concede, 
 That from your argument 'tis plain, 
 That Christian love would be a chain, 
 Which would on Zion better sit, 
 And be a much more graceful fit. 
 But since we don't have that as yet, 
 There's nothing better than a debt. 
 They're bonds of union, I have shown, 
 As men of candor now must own. 
 Another benefit which they 
 Confer on churches, in our day, 
 Is that, (as you can clearly see,) 
 They lead to great activity. 
 
 Mr. A. To me the thing is far from clear, 
 But I'll not judge, till first I hear 
 11 
 
126 Church Debts. 
 
 What kind of action debts produce ; 
 'Tis this which indicates their use. 
 We both, I trust, in this agree, 
 That exercise mere bodily, 
 That is, mere exercise as such, 
 Can never profit Christians much. 
 But 'tis not so with godliness, 
 Its exercise does many bless. 
 If debts do holiness promote, 
 They certainly shall have my vote* 
 
 Mr. B. I cannot say that they produce 
 
 Much holiness; but they conduce, 
 
 In various ways, to keep alive 
 
 The zeal of saints, and make them thrive, 
 
 I've said that people firmly hold 
 Their stock of silver and of gold. 
 The reason is, that influence 
 Is in proportion to the pence* 
 A settled truth it seems to be, 
 " He's not a man of energy, 
 Who don't grow rich and rise above 
 The sphere in which the humble move." 
 If we have wealth we're men of worth, 
 No matter what has been our birth ; 
 'Tis wrong, as wrong itself can be, 
 To search into one's pedigree. 
 Just let a person look genteel, 
 That will a host of sins conceal. 
 Let Ignorance but make a show, 
 And after her the world will go. 
 Yea, even Vice, if she's well dress'd, 
 Will be by multitudes caress'd. 
 A rivulet of grace for show, 
 Will, with a rich man, farther go, 
 Than ocean's depths of righteousness, 
 With him who does no gold possess. 
 Since this is so, the reason's plain, 
 Why Christians do their wealth retain, 
 
Zeal for the Church. 127 
 
 For those who're wealthy, as you see, 
 Gain great respectability. 
 This sentiment, it will be found, 
 In churches rests on solid ground. 
 And multitudes of Christians do, 
 This course most rigidly pursue. 
 There's one exception in the case, 
 Which does the ministers embrace : 
 For their respectability 
 Consists in grace and poverty. 
 In rail-roads, sanctioned by the State, 
 Or stocks, they must not speculate; 
 Nor should they be, in any wise, 
 Engaged in trade and merchandize. 
 As wealth their usefulness impairs, 
 The less they have the less their cares. 
 That this is so, we feel quite sure, 
 And hence we try to keep them poor. 
 Of course they'll in the pulpit be, 
 With or without their salary ; 
 Hence congregations feel at ease, 
 And pay their pastors when they please. 
 
 But 'tis not so if we've a debt, 
 The mortgagee will not forget 
 The day his interest is due, 
 Whatever course we may pursue. 
 To pay that sum we must not fail, 
 For promises will not avail. 
 He may call once, but seldom twice, 
 For in his business he's precise. 
 The Trustees now are plainly told, 
 Their house of worship will be sold : 
 That he will sue his mortgage out, 
 No one now entertains a doubt; 
 Unless the claim be promptly met, 
 The Church must go to pay the debt. 
 To meet the claim is now the thing, 
 Hence ev'ry one must something bring; 
 
128 Church Debts. 
 
 The ladies ply their needles too, 
 And manifest what they can do. 
 The young and old together vie, 
 And little children too must try 
 What they can do, to save the place 
 From deep and permanent disgrace. 
 'Tis this that makes some Christians feel, 
 And fills them full of holy zeal. 
 Such zeal is not to be despised, 
 Multitudes have been canonized 
 For less religion, 'tis confess'd, 
 Than in this case, is manifest. 
 Now I say, without demurring, 
 Debts will keep the Churches stirring. 
 
 M\ A. I certainly with you concur, 
 
 That debts on Churches make them stir ; 
 
 But all the stirring they produce, 
 
 Is verily of little use ; 
 
 Just as a Miss, who's tightly laced, 
 
 The pressure has her ribs displaced ; 
 
 It makes her stir, but 'tis — for breath, 
 
 Her " bonds of union" are her death. 
 
 'Tis so with churches, e'en the best, 
 
 That are by heavy debts oppress'd ; 
 
 They labour, toil, and tug, and strive, 
 
 But 'tis to keep themselves alive. 
 
 They draw with pain their ev'ry breath ; 
 
 And scarce can save themselves from death. 
 
 The other day I chanced to see 
 A decent little Honey Bee; 
 It seems he'd ventur'd far from home, 
 And while away, did often roam, 
 O'er hills and dales and flow'ry meads, 
 Where bees of various sects and creeds, 
 Were wont to meet and spend their hours, 
 In sipping honey from the flowers. 
 By chance, one day, a Dragon-fly 
 Came, at his leisure, saunt'ring by ; 
 
A Parable. 129 
 
 He roved about quite at his ease, 
 He only cared himself to please; 
 He fixed his eye upon the Bee, 
 And said he was surprised that he 
 Should labour thus from hour to hour, 
 In gath'ring food from flow'r to flow'r; 
 Come, follow me, I'll show you where 
 Thy life may be quite free from care, 
 Or if thou'd rather, it may be 
 A life of great activity. 
 
 Our Bee was easy to persuade, 
 And so the Dragon-fly obey'd ; 
 At once the flow'ry mead he left, 
 He seem'd of reason quite bereft ; 
 From rural scenes where nature smiled, 
 'Mid flow'rs luxuriant and wild, 
 He went to revel 'mid the sweets, 
 That may be found in crowded streets. 
 He had not wander'd long nor far, 
 Till he espied a splendid jar, 
 In which was nectar like a sea 
 Of bliss, e'en an infinity. 
 Exulting now he ventur'd near, 
 And sipped those sweets without a fear. 
 But vain presumption urged him on, 
 Discretion had entirely gone; 
 He ventured on beyond the place, 
 From whence he could his steps retrace ; 
 Perceiving danger when too late, 
 He strove himself to extricate. 
 He used his utmost energy 
 From pending danger then to flee ; 
 He strove in vain — exhausted fell — 
 Of all his hopes it was the knell. 
 Oft did he climb quite to the brink, 
 But would as often backward sink. 
 His strength and his activity 
 Were fruitless spent. — Despairing, he 
 11* 
 
130 Church Debts. 
 
 Gave up as lost. — He closed his eyes — 
 In grief and agony he dies. 
 
 Before he died, he weeping said, 
 " How foolishly I have been led ! 
 Oh ! that I had my work pursued, 
 According to my habitude ! 
 Oh ! that I'd been an humble Bee, 
 Then Pride had never ruin'd me ! 
 If I'd repell'd that Dragon-fly, 
 And let his words pass heedless by; 
 With sweets I might have filPd my cell, 
 And still amid enjoyments dwell. 
 When wisdom's ways are thus transgress'd, 
 Enduring peace can't be possess'd. 
 Activity, controll'd by pride, 
 Ne'er leads to bliss." — 'Twas thus he died. 
 
 In churches now, it seems to me, 
 There's some resemblance to this Bee. 
 The path in which they should have trod; 
 Is marked distinctly by their God; 
 Through Pride rejecting that, they say 
 We much prefer some other way. 
 They choose some phantom of their brain, 
 With an activity insane. 
 Their course is foolishness supreme ; 
 Aye, more, 'tis madness in th' extreme. 
 They go in debt, to show, no doubt, 
 Activity in getting out. 
 There is a church that has a debt 
 Of 30,000 on her yet ; 
 It keeps her stirring, I dare say, 
 A heavy interest to pay. 
 She gives her hundreds for her pride, 
 And a few pence to God beside. 
 Her greatest energies are spent, 
 In paying interest and rent. 
 Why should her strength thus wasted be, 
 In this the nineteenth century ? 
 
The Sluggard's Bliss. 131 
 
 The Church has met a sad reverse, 
 But still perpetuates the curse. 
 'Tis strange, as strange itself can be, 
 That she her folly does not see. 
 Two mighty evils she hath done, 
 Not clearer is the noon-day sun. 
 Her God she wickedly hath left, 
 And gone to cisterns that are cleft. 
 Where founts of living waters flow, 
 Where pastures in luxuriance grow, 
 Where grace like show 7 ers distills, e'en there. 
 Where Jesus is to answer prayer: 
 How few appear in meekness now, 
 Or with a contrite spirit bow ! 
 How few thirst after righteousness, 
 And humbly after glory press ! 
 Some seem content to grow in pelf, 
 And live and act, each for himself. 
 They'd rather hear, yea, ten times o'er, 
 Than speak of Christ from door to door. 
 They seek not God to glorify, 
 So much as self to gratify. 
 For saving souls they little care, 
 And hence they seek locations, where 
 They'll never once be asked to pray. 
 Or work for God in any way. 
 They judge absolution to be bliss, - 
 And doing nothing glory is. 
 As this is so, I now can see, 
 That heavy debts of use may be, 
 As when a corpse you galvanize, 
 It starts and opens mouth and eyes; 
 The tongue exerts itself to talk, 
 The limbs attempt again to walk; 
 But vital power it ne'er regains, 
 It still a lifeless corpse remains ; 
 And back it falls without a breath, 
 Locked in the cold embrace of Death. 
 So debts do these Absorbents start, 
 And momentary life impart ; 
 
132 Church Debts. 
 
 Compell'd to move, they quiv'ring rise, 
 And gaze about with vacant eyes. 
 Their hands convulsive seize the purse, 
 And portions of their gold disburse; 
 They grasp the balance, and resume 
 The death-like torpor of the tomb. 
 
 Mr.B. Well, well, friend A., I thought you'd see, 
 That Debts produce activity. 
 I've some encouragement as yet, 
 You'll be an advocate for debt. 
 I'm glad you yield to evidence 
 When once produc'd. This shows good sense; 
 But all their blessings you don't know; 
 With your consent I'll others show. 
 
 Mr. A. I hope you'll show the full amount; 
 
 But you perceive there's some discount 
 To be deducted from the sum, 
 Which will reduce the blessings some. 
 
 Mr.B. With discounts I have naught to do, 
 I'd rather leave that work to you; 
 I give the blessings as they are, 
 With some, I know they'll pass at par. 
 The're various ways, as I may state, 
 In which these debts do operate, 
 To wake the Church's energy, 
 And rouse them from their lethargy. 
 I will at present mention one, 
 To show you how the thing is done. 
 The.love of souls, most verily, 
 Don't wake up half the energy. 
 
 The plan is this. You must begin 
 By ev'ry art to get folks in ; 
 For if the Church can once be fill'd, 
 You'll have in each new life instill'd ; 
 You know our Pastor's influence 
 Is measured by his audience. 
 
A Modern Plan. 133 
 
 If he were Paul, and preached to few, 
 He could but very little do ; 
 But to a crowd, should Demas preach, 
 His words the inmost heart would reach ; 
 E'en braying would like music be, 
 For crowds are judges, certainly. 
 
 Since this is so, I'll tell you how 
 You may secure a number now; 
 Where'er you go, the people tell, 
 "The music in our church goes well;" 
 Or tell them that "the organist 
 Is 'mong the best that does exist." 
 Invite them then to hear him play, 
 And e'er you part, secure their yea. 
 And should you find some family 
 That go some where quite steadily, 
 But, where they are, 'tis understood 
 They can't give much — but do some good, 
 Invite them still to come with you, 
 And see you take them to your pew. 
 Then whisper : " Friends, the trustees will 
 Give you a pew if it you'll fill ; 
 Your family is good, I know, 
 They'd make with us a handsome show. 
 It would our Pastor gratify, 
 Yourselves and us 'twould dignify: 
 Now, Sabbath next I hope to see 
 With us your lovely family," 
 
 And should you find a lad or lass, 
 A member of some Bible-class, 
 Invite them to your class, or where 
 You often meet for social prayer. 
 No matter if they do forsake 
 Their church, and thus their cov'nant break. 
 And as regards the Sabbath-school, 
 The little ones you can be-fool; 
 Just offer them some costly book, 
 Like silly fish they'll bite the hook ; 
 
134 Church Debts. 
 
 They'll leave their school and come with you, 
 
 Perhaps they'll bring their parents too. 
 
 This rule you must still keep in mind, 
 
 " Take ev'ry one that you can find." 
 
 If from a Church, it matters not, 
 
 Don't give that thing a second thought ; 
 
 The object keep before you still, 
 
 And try your empty pews to fill. 
 
 Thus by degrees some men you'll get, 
 
 Who'll greatly help to pay the debt. 
 
 Now all this zeal would not be shown, 
 
 Without a debt as you must own. 
 
 To lead a soul from woe to bliss, 
 
 Yields not activity like this. 
 
 And now, I think, you must conclude, 
 
 That debts on churches are a good. 
 
 Mr. A. Debts are quite good, I must confess, 
 To bring on churches worldliness ; 
 They're better still to foster Pride, 
 And Vanity and Strife beside : 
 Yea, more, the very best, you see, 
 For lying and Hypocrisy. 
 I know you'll think me het'rodox, 
 But, I affirm Pandora's box, 
 (Suppose that fable to be true,) 
 Ne'er cursed the world as Church debts do. 
 Those varied ills men's bodies smite, 
 But these the inmost spirit blight. 
 Then cheering hope was left behind, 
 But here is nought to cheer the mind. 
 The curse is like the leprosy, 
 That smote the house of Gehazi; 
 Besides himself, his household were 
 For ever doomed the curse to bear. 
 Your plan I heartily despise, 
 'Tis despicable in my eyes ; 
 If you must steal, I'd say, in brief, 
 Do be, at least, a decent thief; 
 
Stealing Members, 135 
 
 And in your hateful robbery, 
 
 Don't steal from zealous poverty: 
 
 Men don't despise a hungry thief, 
 
 If stealing be to find relief; 
 
 But those who. steal for sake of gain, 
 
 If they are cursed, must not complain. 
 
 'Tis so with churches not a few, 
 
 Which do this worldly course pursue ; 
 
 They steal from others, not through need, 
 
 But pride and worldliness to feed. 
 
 Go to the world, draw men from thence, 
 
 Thus show your great benevolence. 
 
 You rob Saint Paul to pay Saint Peter, 
 
 Then in a tune of grave long meter, 
 
 Give God the praise for }'our increase, 
 
 And glory in a stolen fleece. 
 
 A course like this God never bless'd, 
 
 You'll find at last, 'tis curse possess'd. 
 
 If Christians would respect command, 
 From men of thought throughout the land ; 
 If they'd secure the Spirit's aid, 
 To stay their course now retrograde; 
 If they would rescue men from woe, 
 As on in multitudes they go; 
 If they desire God's will to do, 
 They must a diff'rent course pursue. 
 There are some men who're more intent, 
 On shaving notes to make a cent, 
 Than e'er they've been to save a soul, 
 Or rescue men from sin's control. 
 And yet these men profess to be 
 In thought and feeling, heavenly ! 
 There others are, for they abound, 
 In ev'ry Church they can be found, 
 Who, like great sucklings, fed on milk, 
 And wrapp'd in swad'ling bands of silk, 
 Still seem to think and feel and act, 
 As if it were a sober fact, 
 
\2Q Church Debts. 
 
 That they must by absorption rise, 
 To dwell in glory in the skies. 
 
 Now, take the churches ev'ry where, 
 >Tis manifest, their greatest care 
 Is to defend themselves, and hence 
 Arises their great impotence. 
 The Church at first did not act so ; 
 Christ gave command that they should go 
 In all the world— the nations teach- 
 To ev'ry soul the gospel preach : 
 They went, and 'gainst the world they fougru, 
 And never once its favour sought. 
 Their movements were aggressive still, 
 Thus they obey'd their Saviour's will. 
 The Church moved onward steadily, 
 
 From victory to victory ; 
 
 Now, with the world she's made a truce, 
 
 And hence for armour has no use. 
 
 Christians, alas ! have ceased to be 
 
 Rebukers of iniquity. 
 
 Who does the worldliness oppose, 
 
 That now through all the churches flows I 
 
 Where are those men who fearless tell, 
 
 The worldling and the infidel, 
 
 Of coming wrath— and urge them now, 
 
 In humble penitence to bow ? 
 
 Where are the men who feel that they 
 
 Must all Jehovah's laws obey? 
 
 From serving self they never swerve, 
 
 And would by proxy Jesus serve; 
 
 Their full responsibility 
 
 They shun with great facility. 
 
 Said Worldly-wisdom once to me, 
 " The Church pursues bad policy, 
 "We have too many stations, where 
 Is offered up the poor man's prayer. 
 Had I my way, I'd break the neck 
 Of all weak churches. Then I'd check 
 
Worldly- Wisdom, 1 37 
 
 Henceforth their birth, and would create 
 
 Each Church at once in manhood state. 
 
 We'd from long nursings then be free, 
 
 It would be great economy. 
 
 I'd then select the nicest spot 
 
 That could, in any place, be got; 
 
 And there a splendid house I'd build, 
 
 And soon, I'm sure, it would be filled. 
 
 Just make the Church respectable, 
 
 Then ev'ry thing will go on well; 
 
 The rich and poor I'd there unite, 
 
 To see such union I delight. 
 
 As pews below are high, you see, 
 
 The poor will take the gallery. 
 
 If I had millions I'd pursue 
 
 The plan I've sketched, say would not you ?" 
 
 To Worldly-wisdom, I replied; 
 When Piety once marries Pride, 
 I have no hope that e'er she'll be, 
 Of any great utility, 
 In saving souls from endless woe, 
 For now her heart is bent on show. 
 The humble man God chooses still, 
 To execute his gracious will ; 
 But if the church will foster pride. 
 And will not in his plans confide, 
 He'll leave them curs'd by Pride and Debt, 
 And all the woes which they beget. 
 
 Mr. B. From what I've said, you have at length, 
 In all their beauty and their strength, 
 The varied uses "of a debt, 
 And all the blessings they beget. 
 I now shall wait to hear from you, 
 What injury Church debts can do; 
 And if Church debts, church curses are, 
 1 hope you'll be particular, 
 To point the curse distinctly out, 
 Nor leave on any mind a doubt. 
 12 
 
138 Church Debts, 
 
 If you their real evils show, 
 On all a favour you'll bestow. 
 
 Mr. A. Their evils, Sir, are manifold, 
 
 Nor can their magnitude be told. 
 
 Eternity, with all its light, 
 
 We need, to see this curse aright. 
 
 By facts, I shall corroborate 
 
 The truth of ev'ry thing I state. 
 
 I'll place the facts before your face — 
 
 Appoint you judge in ev'ry case; 
 
 And, in the end, I trust you'll see, 
 
 That Debts lead to Hypocrisy — 
 
 That they, the Church of Christ, disgrace; 
 
 The gospel ministry debase — 
 
 The Pastor from his flock they rend, 
 
 And souls who'd come to Christ forefend ; 
 
 Yea, more, that they God's plan pervert, 
 
 And Christians from their work divert; 
 
 They stop the angel in his flight, 
 
 To spread o'er earth the gospel light; 
 
 Of all the evils, they're the worst, 
 
 That have the church for ages curs'd. 
 
 Mr. B. ]f these Church debts are half as bad 
 As you affirm, the case is sad. 
 But I confess, I cannot see 
 How they promote hypocrisy ; 
 Or, how they can, in any way, 
 Confirm the truth of what you say. 
 But you have studied well, I know, 
 Their influence for weal or woe: 
 Jn silence, then, I'll gladly wait, 
 To hear what facts you have to state. 
 So now proceed, and prove to me 
 That Debts produce Hypocrisy. 
 
 Mi\A. I'll mention, then, a common case, 
 That shows no honesty or grace; 
 And leave you free the act to blame, 
 Or, if you can, commend the same. 
 
 
The Consultation. 139 
 
 It happen'd once, no matter where, 
 Some Christians met, for such they were ; 
 At all events, they bore the name, 
 In common parlance 'tis the same. 
 On sober thought, it seem'd quite clear, 
 That they for God a house should rear. 
 A difficulty now arose 
 ('Tis oft the case, as each one knows) 
 About the size, the price, the style, 
 Which occupied their thoughts awhile. 
 It soon appear'd that ev'ry man, 
 As master builder, had a plan ; 
 And each one thought his plan the best, 
 And 'gainst the others did protest. 
 
 Said one, " I'm for a building grand, 
 That admiration will command; 
 'Tis for our God, and he'll provide, 
 If in his pow'r we'll but confide. 
 We'd better build one large enough, 
 And trust to God to furnish stuff." 
 
 " Good Music," said our Elder Wright, 
 ** Is what we need for the elite ; 
 Just let the Organ be first rate, 
 'Twill give the truth tremendous weight. 
 It will a crowded house secure, 
 Which faithful preaching can't procure. 
 They for the Gospel little care, 
 It is the Music brings them there." 
 
 A third one differ'd from the rest — 
 He said, "I have but one request, 
 That we'll erect a Church the best 
 That gold can rear or thought suggest. 
 And not stand carping at expense, 
 As if we'd no benevolence. 
 We'll make it for our interest, 
 To build a Church, the very best." 
 
140 Church Debts. 
 
 The thing was argued well, and each 
 Was privileged to make a speech ; 
 The talking o'er, they then agreed, 
 That with the building they'd proceed. 
 The work moved on with rapid rate, 
 Each workman seemed to emulate 
 The others, till the work was done, 
 Which they so nobly had begun. 
 The workmen now must all be paid, 
 And this is done through borrow'd aid. 
 Friends pay a part, and lend the rest 
 At six per cent, on interest, 
 By bond and mortgage on the place, 
 Where Jesus manifests his grace ! ! 
 
 The day arrives to dedicate 
 This house to God. In solemn state 
 The people come from far and near, 
 They seem to be, indeed, sincere. 
 Here rev'rend Ministers are found, 
 In theologic lore profound, 
 Attended by a retinue 
 Of Elders and of Deacons too ; 
 And multitudes of folks beside, 
 Who in the present plan confide, 
 Of giving God a house not theirs, 
 And sanctifying sin by prayers. 
 
 The services begin, and now 
 The crowd in supplication bow ; 
 And earnestly they ask in prayer 
 The presence of Jehovah there. 
 A hymn was sung — a sermon preach'd, 
 Which neither purse nor conscience reach'd. 
 Of saint or sinner on the ground, 
 Although the preacher was renow'd. 
 
 The sermon o'er; the preacher spoke 
 In solemn tones — " Let us invoke 
 
The Dedication. 141 
 
 God's blessing, while, with hearts elate, 
 
 This house to Him we dedicate." 
 
 The people rose, and then in prayer, 
 
 They did most solemnly declare — 
 
 " We've rear'd, O Lord, this house for thee ; 
 
 Here may thy name still honour'd be. 
 
 This house apart for Thee we set — 
 
 (DCr'They ne'er confess'd it was in debt.) 
 
 May generations yet unborn, 
 
 With grateful praise Thy house adorn. 
 
 Accept this gift we now present, 
 
 Father, to Thee, with one consent; 
 
 Accept this gift, we pray again, 
 
 'Tis Thine for aye. Amen, Amen." 
 
 Not many years had pass'd away, 
 When, with a friend, I went one day 
 To worship in this temple, where 
 I'd heard that dedicating prayer. 
 1 thought with joy on scenes by-gone, 
 As mem'ry viewed them one by one. 
 While musing thus with heart elate, 
 I found myself before the gate. 
 I saw some one the door had shut, 
 And on the wall a notice put, 
 I read the notice with surprise, 
 Scarce giving credence to my eyes: 
 *' This house for sale, to pay the debt 
 Remaining on the building yet." 
 My friend inquired, " Whose house is this ? 
 Why, have the people been remiss, 
 To pay the debt and save the place 
 From such a permanent disgrace V 9 
 " 'Tis God's," I said. Not so, said he ; 
 What ! God in debt ! ! That cannot be. 
 And tell me, who has right to claim 
 This House devoted to God's name? 
 Has man a right to buy or sell 
 God's house, if it should please him well 1 
 12* 
 
142 Church Debts. 
 
 Who gave to him the privilege 
 To do such deeds of sacrilege? 
 J've heard of some that often do, 
 First make their god then eat him too; 
 But men of truth cannot act so, 
 They can't be hypocrites, you know; 
 They say sincerely what they mean, 
 And by their works, their faith is seen." 
 
 I then replied, I still affirm, 
 The house is God's, and can confirm 
 The truth of ev'ry thing I say, 
 By Elder D. across the way ; 
 For he was present years ago, 
 And recollects the facts, I know. 
 We call'd the man, and hoped that he 
 Would explicate the mystery. 
 
 Elder D. The Elder came. Kind Sirs, said he, 
 Since you've referred the case to me, 
 I can confirm what has been said ; 
 I saw the corner stone when laid. 
 I watch'd the building as it rose, 
 And all its hist'ry can disclose. 
 The house, when finished, was involved 
 In heavy debt ; but we resolved 
 To give just what we had, and pay 
 The rest, perhaps, some other day. 
 We felt ourselvss quite in the lurch, 
 Jn dedicating all the Church. 
 As we had only paid one-third, 
 It seemed to us somewhat absurd, 
 To dedicate one-third of it, 
 And all the other parts omit. 
 To save the thing from looking droll, 
 We thought we'd dedicate the whole. 
 
 If that's the way, my friend replied, 
 The work was done, the people lied ; 
 
The aid of Ministers. 143 
 
 For all their singing and their prayers, 
 Can never prove the house was theirs. 
 The thing is wrong, as wrong can be, 
 There's lying and hypocrisy. 
 If men should treat their fellows so, 
 They'd act the hypocrite you know; 
 Now, what is sin 'gainst man, can't be 
 Esteem'd God-ward as piety. 
 
 Mr. A. I must agree with this friend's views, 
 But you may differ if you choose. 
 But say, friend B., and is it so, 
 That men will dare on God bestow, 
 A house, or any property, 
 On which some man, as mortgagee, 
 Has prior claims, and which he may 
 Put up for sale his claim to pay? 
 In acts like this, I must confess, 
 I see no truth nor righteousness. 
 
 'Tis sad that ministers should lend 
 Their influence, and should commend 
 A plan so fatal ; aye, the worst, 
 That has the Church for ages curs'd. 
 If they'll by praying sanction sin, 
 " And keep this curse the Church within, 
 No man of sense can ever doubt, 
 They'll preach in vain to turn it out. 
 So long as they are gratified, 
 To see the people, in their pride, 
 Devote to God a house unpaid, 
 And thus the Christian name degrade. 
 They'll keep from God what is his due, 
 And will this wicked course pursue. 
 Great sin rests on the ministry ; 
 For, such bare-faced hypocrisy, 
 The people will forever quit, 
 If ministers won't sanction it. 
 And now, friend B., 'tis left with you 
 To judge if what I say is true. 
 
144 Church Debts. 
 
 Mr.B. I cannot well decide the case, 
 
 Without the facts before my face ; 
 
 Present the facts, then I can tell 
 
 If these Church-debts work ill or well. 
 
 But, with your views, I must confess, 
 
 I seem disposed to acquiesce. 
 
 I will, however, hear you through, 
 
 Perhaps, I then may think w r ith you. 
 
 It may not be hypocrisy, 
 
 Nor even insincerity, 
 
 That leads some Christian people yet, 
 
 To give the Lord a house in debt. 
 
 I still maintain, they mean to do 
 
 The thing that's right ; say, do not you ? 
 
 Mr. A. I don't think so. They know 'tis wrong ; 
 The house does not to them belong; 
 I've no faith in transmigration, 
 Nor in transubstantiation. 
 I cannot think when men say prayers 
 Within a house, that it is theirs; 
 Pray much or little, short or long, 
 The house does not to them belong. 
 
 'Tis said, that once a Priest was sent 
 On business, in the time of Lent; 
 He lost his way in coming home, 
 And through the forest had to roam. 
 Fatigued by travelling and oppressed, 
 He sought a shelter where to rest; 
 In looking round from side to side, 
 A lowly cottage he espied : 
 He entered it with great delight, 
 And found a lodging for the night. 
 He asked his host for food to eat, 
 His host replied, " We've only meat." 
 The Priest responds, " Don't think it strange, 
 I can its nature quickly change." 
 Then solemnly the meat he took, 
 And praying, plunged it in the brook. 
 
" Pious Frauds." 145 
 
 "Hcec est perva— Go down gammon, 
 Hie est pisces — Come up salmon." 
 Thus by an art well understood, 
 The Priest had fine fresh fish for food ; 
 These Latin prayers are just the thing, 
 That out of ham can salmon bring. 
 
 But m en, in vain, such tricks condemn, 
 
 While they themselves still practice them. 
 
 The Priest may call the gammon fish, 
 
 And eat as much as heart could wish; 
 
 And, by " Distinguo," get free 
 
 From penances, most probably. 
 
 Yet, still the thing is but a lie, 
 
 As truth and conscience testify. 
 
 And ev'ry Church acts falsely too, 
 
 That does a sim'lar course pursue. 
 
 It is a kind of " pious fraud," 
 
 (Abhorrent in the eyes of God), 
 
 Which men have practiced, now, so long, 
 
 That some aver, it is not wrong 
 
 To give to God a house by prayers, 
 E'en while they know it is not theirs. 
 But unpaid workmen don't forget, 
 That on the house there rests a debt 
 
 Which must be paid, ere it can be 
 
 The house of God, in honesty. 
 
 But lordly sinners have a way 
 
 Of managing, in this our day, 
 
 That quadrates with the laws of man, 
 
 But, with God's law it never can. 
 
 The plan is this — they say we owe 
 
 A very heavy debt, we know 
 
 The house, if sold, won't bring, we guess, 
 
 Th' amount of debt — say, one-third less ; 
 
 The house we'll sell and buy it in, 
 
 And by the trick some thousands win. 
 
 The carpenters and masons too, 
 
 Will lose some hundreds, that is true ; 
 
 But that's not our concern — 'tis theirs, 
 
 We'll get the house—and then, by prayers, 
 
146 Church Debts. 
 
 And singing hymns, wash out the stain 
 That on our conscience may remain. 
 No matter how the men may curse 
 The Church as hypocrites, or worse; 
 The law protecting, we'll be free 
 From this Church-debt perplexity. 
 
 Such is the plan. But God must hate 
 Such hypocritical deceit ; 
 How can such men draw nigh to God, 
 While workmen's wages are by fraud 
 Kept back ? The Lord does them condemn, 
 And honest men should them contemn. 
 
 A fact I'll state, if you'll permit, 
 It is in point, you must admit. 
 
 A Hindoo once prepared a feast, 
 To entertain the village Priest; 
 He asked the Brahmuns far and near, 
 Who did the rules of caste revere, 
 To join with them in festive mood, 
 To eat the consecrated food. 
 A host appeared, and all were dressed 
 In flowing robes, the very best. 
 The man was gratified, that he 
 Should entertain such company; 
 For in the Priests, without pretence, 
 He'd placed the utmost confidence. 
 He hoped that they his house would bless, 
 And thus increase his righteousness. 
 And so they did, but not as he 
 Had hoped, as in the end we'll see. 
 
 The Priest, a worshipper of Sheve, 
 Had brought a Lingum in his sleeve; 
 But ere the feast was fully o'er, 
 He rose, and standing on the floor, 
 In Sungskrit verse, a Muntru said, 
 While they stood round with bended head, 
 
Tfie Hindoo Priest. 147 
 
 And thus concealed from outward view, 
 
 The thing the Priest was then to do. 
 
 While he was mutt'ring o'er his prayers, 
 
 One of the Priests a hole prepares; 
 
 Another sprinkles water round, 
 
 And thus he consecrates the ground. 
 
 Then, in the hole the god is set, 
 
 And with the sacred oil is wet. 
 
 'Tis now for adoration fit, 
 
 So, down they fall and worship it ; 
 
 And now, proclaims the wily knave, 
 
 This house belongs to Maha-Dev. 
 
 The Priests, uniting shout aloud, 
 
 As round the senseless stone they crowd ; 
 
 Henceforth this house, a fane must be, 
 
 Great Maha-Dev! alone to thee! 
 
 Here let no Shoodroo show his face, • 
 
 Let none pollute this sacred place ; 
 
 But, let it still a temple be, 
 
 To thee, Great Maha-Dev ! to thee ! 
 
 The man protested ; but 'twas vain, 
 His house was turned into a fane ; 
 The laws confirmed the wickedness, 
 But paid the man in righteousness 
 The full amount of what it cost; 
 'Twas all he got. The house he lost. 
 
 Mr. B. But surely you don't mean to say 
 That Christians act in such a way, 
 They'd certainly these Priests contemn, 
 And such hypocrisy condemn. 
 If Churches now should act like that, 
 I don't know what they'd next be at. 
 There's much that's wrong, I know full well, 
 For good and ill together dwell ; 
 But that which now the Church annoys, 
 Was ten times worse when we were boys; 
 The world is growing better fast, 
 And soon these ills will all be past. 
 
148 Church Debts. 
 
 Mr. A. Upon this point we'll disagree; 
 But for the present, let it be. 
 I'll only say what God has said, 
 That wickedness will greatly spread, 
 And hence, as 'twas in days of old, 
 The love of many will grow cold ; 
 But half the church will grace possess, 
 The balance, wilhout righteousness, 
 Will to the world still wedded be, 
 Till earth from Satan's power be free. 
 But if the world, as you declare, 
 Is growing better ev'ry where; 
 Then, why, I ask, does it not show it, 
 And why so few that seem to know it? 
 The churches, too, are growing cold, 
 Caressing these, who have the gold; 
 • For wealth is loved 'fore godliness, 
 And humble faith grows less and less. 
 The reason why the Church of God, 
 At home, doth languish, and abroad, 
 Is found in Pride and worldliness, 
 That now the Church's soul possess. 
 
 You certainly will not allow 
 That Christians are so poor just now, 
 That they, in truth, can't pay the debt 
 Resting upon their churches yet. 
 They have the means, but want the will, 
 This part of duty to fulfil. 
 Oh ! if for God they had the zeal 
 That heathen for their idols feel ; 
 If they would be what they profess, 
 Lovers of God and righteousness; 
 And spend, in saving men from woe, 
 But half they spend in Pride and show, 
 No debts on churches would be found, 
 On Christian or on heathen ground. 
 They'd all be paid most speedily 
 By Christian liberality. 
 
Progressive Benevolence. 149 
 
 Mr. B. I must confess that Christians could 
 
 Redeem their churches, if they would ; 
 They have the money, that is plain, 
 Though oft of poverty complain. 
 It may not be through want of grace, 
 So much as knowledge in the case, 
 That leads so many to withhold, 
 From God, the silver and the gold. 
 1 well remember, years ago, 
 That I would scarcely ever throw 
 More than a sixpence in the box, 
 And thought that this was orthodox. 
 But, by degrees, I found I could 
 Give twice as much, and yet have food. 
 Thus, I continued giving more 
 Each time, than I had done before; 
 Till, finally, at church, one day, 
 I gave a dollar note away! 
 Encouraged and amazed, I then 
 Advanced to five, from five to ten; 
 And now, I find that I can give 
 Hundreds instead of tens, and live; 
 Yea, live far happier than the time 
 My contribution was a dime. 
 It may be, others have, like me, 
 Measured by pence their charity. 
 It may not be sheer worldliness 
 That makes them give a great deal less 
 Than we are confident they would, 
 If they the subject understood. 
 
 Mr. A. Men, doubtless, do sincerely try, 
 In various ways, to justify 
 Their prodigality and priae, 
 And sordid worldliness beside. 
 But all their efforts will be vain, 
 To justify their course profane; 
 For no excuse that can be given, 
 Can stand the test of righteous heaven. 
 13 
 
150 Church Debts. 
 
 Now, here's a Church that has a debt 
 Of twenty thousand on it yet; 
 The int'rest on this sum, you see, 
 Will just twelve hundred dollars be. 
 This sum is paid, and must be paid, 
 While other debts aside are laid ; 
 By doing so, they may keep clear 
 From Venditor, the auctioneer. 
 But see how this the Church affects, 
 And leads to sundry sad neglects. 
 And first : the cause of Missions gets, 
 Her heaviest blow, from these Church debts; 
 The people are involved, and say, 
 "We cannot give our funds away; 
 Our int'rest money must be paid, 
 Or things with us will retrograde. 
 The Mission-cause is good, we know, 
 And, were it not for debts we owe, 
 We might a large donation give ; 
 But, with us, there's no alternative, 
 We must refuse, in honesty, 
 Whate'er the consequence may be." 
 And thus it is this work of God — 
 The Mission-cause, at home, abroad, 
 Must be kept back, if it don't get 
 Its quietus, through this vile debt. 
 
 But, next : how fares the minister 1 
 Oft ill enough, as he'll aver; 
 He's often blamed because he can't 
 Open the hearts of adamant, 
 And force the misers to repent, 
 And be for once benevolent. 
 He's blamed because the rich will not 
 To debt-cursed Churches join their lot, 
 And thus of funds supply the lack, 
 Which fraudulently is kept back. 
 And now retrenchment must be made, 
 And where begin, but at the head ? 
 
A Desideratum. 151 
 
 The minister, of course, must be 
 
 Diminished in his salary; 
 
 *Tis always done with deep regret! 
 
 But then— the int'rest must be met. 
 
 Of course, the people can't give up 
 
 One draught from their luxurious cup ; 
 
 They've got their funds in this and that, 
 
 So that they ne'er can be got at; 
 
 Their stocks and stores must be increased, 
 
 Hence ministers must needs be fleeced, 
 
 And driven from their flocks, to roam 
 
 Abroad on earth to find a home, 
 
 And friends whose hearts have not, as yet, 
 
 Callous become through a Church Debt. 
 
 With man this policy seems wise — 
 
 'Tis despicable in God's eyes. 
 
 Oh, what a pity 'tis, that now 
 God don't the heavens weekly bow, 
 And send the churches, Peter, Paul, 
 Th' Apostles, Prophets, Martyrs, all, 
 And bid them preach one day in seven, 
 And take them up again to heaven. 
 'Twould save expenses, and would be, 
 With some, first rate economy. 
 Then, splendid churches they might build, 
 And with the godless have them filled; 
 Magnificent they'd have them be, 
 To shut out humble poverty. 
 'Tis true that God converts the poor, 
 And heav'n is filled with such, we're sure; 
 But Churches now are well content, 
 To do without the indigent. 
 With itching ears, from far and near, 
 They daily run new things to hear ; 
 They seek themselves to glorify, 
 And not the poor to edify ! 
 To make a show and foster pride, 
 And pay the minister beside ; 
 
152 Church Debts. 
 
 Demand too much, and hence the plan, 
 To keep their pride and starve the man. 
 
 But time would fail to speak of all 
 The ills that on the churches fall, 
 Through this vile system of Church fraud; 
 This wholesale robbery of God : 
 Suffice it here to say, they claim, 
 Most justly, " Legion," as their name. 
 They're an unmitigated curse, 
 You'll search in vain to find a worse. 
 
 But what has now the Church possess'd, 
 To throw away, in interest, 
 Such sums of money which should go 
 The Powers of sin to overthrow? 
 Why not pay off their debt, and be, 
 At once, from ev'ry fetter free 1 
 
 The truth is this — men understand, 
 That with God's money in their hand, 
 They can afford, as suits them best, 
 To pay the yearly interest; 
 For with the balance, which they take, 
 They speculate, and fortunes make ; 
 But if they'd do the thing that's right, 
 And in the law of God delight, 
 They would, at once, His house set free 
 From this debasing slavery. 
 God would then His word fulfill, 
 By pouring out His spirit still 
 Upon His Churches all around, 
 Thus making joy and peace abound. 
 " Bring all the tythes" — thus saith the Lord. 
 " Within my house, with one accord ; 
 Let there be meat — a full supply, 
 And prove my faithfulness hereby, 
 In sov'reign mercy I'll provide, 
 That heav'nly founts be open'd wide; 
 And streams of blessings from them flow, 
 T' enrich the Church and world below. 
 
The Truth Confessed. J53 
 
 Yea, such a blessing will I send, 
 That far and wide it shall extend, 
 Till ev'ry earthly dwelling place 
 Be filled with overflowing grace." 
 
 But, oh ! the Church, controll'd by Pride, 
 Doth m her selfishness confide, 
 She does too little for her God, 
 And hence she falls beneath His rod; 
 Of barrenness and drought complains, 
 But yet her worldliness retains. 
 Oh ! that she would the truth believe, 
 " 'Tis not so blessed to receive 
 As 'tis to give''— and spread abroad, 
 Where'er the foot of man hath trod, 
 The joyful news that God is Love, 
 And Christ's our Advocate above. 
 Oh ! then she would, with God-like heart, 
 Salvation to the world impart; 
 And be, as God would have her be, 
 The image of His purity. 
 
 Mr.B. I'm forced, at last, in truth to say, 
 The Church has wander'd far away 
 From the example of her Lord, 
 And simple precepts of his word. 
 Nor does she seem at all to feel, 
 That holy joy — unwearied zeal, 
 With which the early Church was bless'd, 
 And Apostolic men possessed, 
 The cause of this, no doubt, must be 
 A sad decline in piety. 
 The world, by flattery and art, 
 Hath made inroads upon her heart ; 
 Its schemes of wealth, its maxims, ways, 
 Its popularity and praise, 
 Have hidden from her eye the woe 
 Which must a godless world o'erflow. 
 She does not see, or seem to see, 
 The wretchedness and misery 
 13* 
 
154 Church, Debts. 
 
 Of millions of the human race, 
 
 Who're dying destitute of grace. 
 
 Nor does she now, as she did then, 
 
 Devote her strength to saving men ; 
 
 No, not a tythe of it is spent 
 
 To save from endless punishment, 
 
 The souls of men, more precious far, 
 
 Than earth and ail her jewels are. 
 
 The Church has men, and money too, 
 
 And rare facilities to do 
 
 The work that God to her assigns, 
 
 In forwarding His great designs. 
 
 If with these means she had the will, 
 
 She'd soon the world with knowledge fill, 
 
 And hasten on that blessed day, 
 
 When righteousness shall have the sway. 
 
 Mr. A. Right glad am I that now, friend B., 
 We seem so nearly to agree ; 
 I have no doubt, that you will yet, 
 Sincerely hate this vile Church Debt. 
 
 Mr. B. I see the evil of the plan, 
 
 And shall exert what power I can, 
 To have God*s house forever free, 
 From this Church debt iniquity. 
 
 Mr. A. I pray you do ; for I am sure, 
 
 Church debts curse both the rich and poor; 
 And just so long as men withhold 
 From God his silver and his gold ; 
 And, through their worfdliness, neglect 
 To pay for Churches they erect, 
 So long will He their ways contemn, 
 And showers of grace withhold from them. 
 
 May God, by power Omnipotent, 
 Constrain His people to repent ; 
 And, in great mercy, quickly set 
 His Churches free from a Church Debt. 
 
 W. R, 
 
NOTES. 
 
 NOTE A.— Pages 11 and 122. 
 
 The Parsee Cemetery, or, as it is called, " The Tower of Silence," 
 is the place where the Parsees deposit the bodies of their dead. 
 
 The engraving gives us an accurate bird's eye view of the one built 
 on Malabar Hill, on the west side of the island of Bombay, by Framjee 
 Cowasjee, a wealthy Parsee. The engraving is copied from a draw- 
 ing taken by my friend Mr. Arthur D. Fallon, an excellent artist of 
 Bombay. I am indebted to his kindness for the drawing, and for the 
 following description of the Tower : " The drawing is a bird's eye 
 view of the Gemetery, which is built of grey stone, and chunammed 
 (plaistered) outside. It is about 80 feet in diameter ; the well in the 
 centre is in diameter about 40 feet ; from the top of the building, to 
 the platform, where the bodies are laid, is about nine feet. On the 
 platform are three rows of receptacles for the dead bodies of the Par- 
 sees. The outermost or largest is for the men ; the middle one for 
 the females ; and the innermost and smallest is for the children. The 
 deep lines on the platform are to carry off the fat, &c, of their bodies 
 into the large well in the centre. The building is open at the top. 
 The two doors observable in the well in the centre, are each perfo- 
 rated with about 100 small holes, which carry off the rain, &c, that 
 falls into the centre. These doors communicate with wells under 
 ground. There are altogether four of these doors, with four large 
 chains, used as ladders, by which you may go down into the well. 
 The bottom of the well in the centre is convex. When this well is 
 filled with the bones of the dead, a new Cemetery is then constructed. 
 
 " This one is made so as to contain 237 bodies at one time, viz : the 
 bodies of 79 men, 79 women, and 79 children. The small hole in the 
 building to the left of the door, is to allow a person from the inside, 
 to observe the sacred fire which burns, not far distant from the spotJ 
 
156 NOTES. 
 
 On each side of the door, which is made of iron, is an inscription 
 commemorative of the building. The one to the right is in English; 
 the other is in the native language. 
 
 "The site of the building being so elevated, there is a beautiful view 
 from it of the whole island, together with the harbour and shipping. 
 I have understood that it cost Framjee Cowasjee about half a lack of 
 rupees, ($25,000,) including every thing. 
 
 " A. D. Fallon." 
 
 This Tower was erected in 1S32. It is said that Framjee Cowasjee 
 had set apart for his young and only daughter, the sum of half a lack 
 of rupees, as her portion. But, as she died before her marriage, he 
 considered this money as sacred, and would not devote it to any pri- 
 vate use of his own. He, therefore, resolved to build this " Tower" 
 for the benefit of his nation. When it was finished, and before its 
 consecration, he gave a general invitation to all who wished to visit 
 it, to do so. Accordingly, in company with the Rev. D. O. Allen and 
 others, on April 5, and on the following day with Mrs. Ramsey, I 
 visited this depository of the dead. The description of it, as given 
 by Mr. Fallon, is in all things correct. I would merely add, that the 
 height of the Tower is above 20 feet. 
 
 I was highly pleased with the beauty of the place and the delight- 
 ful prospect it afforded of the island and the ocean. But the multi- 
 tude of horrid looking, voracious vultures which had grown fat from 
 feasting on the bodies of the deceased Parsees, and which were perch- 
 ed all around you, on the neighbouring palm trees or on the tops of the 
 other towers, together with the thought of the revolting manner in 
 which the dead are here disposed of, absolutely chilled my blood and 
 made my flesh crawl upon my bones. The staring eyes of these lazy 
 vultures, as they watched us wherever we went, seemed to say, " we 
 should be glad to pick the flesh off your bones also." To the Christian it 
 i,s one of the most revolting modes of getting rid of the dead bodies of 
 our friends, that the mind can imagine. The idea of having my sepul- 
 chre in the filthy stomachs of those hideous vultures, is to me unut- 
 terably horrible. If this body must be devoured, let it be done by 
 some decent wild beast of the forest, or by some monster of the deep; 
 but the idea of having my flesh torn from my bones by the beaks and 
 claws of a host of vultures fighting for the tenderest morsel, and to be 
 gulped down bit by bit, makes me shudder to think of it.. It would 
 give me no satisfaction, as it does the Parsee, to have some one peep 
 
NOTES. 1 57 
 
 through the hole in the wall, and to see which eye of my departed 
 friend the vultures have torn out first. The whole thing is so opposed 
 to all the refined feelings of our nature, that I am at a loss to conceive 
 how such a mode of sepulture could have been devised. Christianity 
 is a blessing to man if it had taught him no more than how to show 
 proper respect for the bodies of our departed friends. 
 
 When I visited this " Tower of Silence," there were three others 
 within the same enclosure. They were smaller than this one, but all 
 were alike in their construction. 
 
 My design in speaking of this singular custom of the Parsees is 
 twofold ; first, to inform the reader of this strange mode of burial : 
 and second, to illustrate the benevolence of the Parsees in matters 
 pertaining to religion. One man makes a donation of $25,000 to his 
 nation, for their "Towers of Silence," as well as their temples, must 
 be free from debt. And if men, who are strangers to the grace of 
 God, manifest such a commendable spirit of liberality, what must we 
 think of those who profess to be the Lord's, and who acknowledge that 
 all they have belongs to Him, and yet have not religion enough to 
 build their Lord a house, or to pay the debt on those they have built, 
 though they are able to do it. This state of feeling surely cannot be 
 right. 
 
 NOTE B.— Page 14. 
 GUNESH. 
 
 The name Gunesh, or Gunputtee, is composed of the two Sungskrit 
 words, Gun, a troop or host, and Esh, or Puttee, Lord or Ruler. The 
 word means "the Lord of Hosts, or Ruler of armies." This god is 
 considered, in the western part of India, as the god of Wisdom, as well 
 as the god of Hosts. He is the son of Sheve and Parwutee. He is 
 described as a short person with four arms, an elephant's head and a 
 huge stomach. There are three different accounts of the way in which 
 he became honoured with so huge a head. Serpents are bending over 
 him. The mysterious and sacred symbol of the Hindoo trinity is over 
 his head, encircled by a serpent. The word is A. 0. M., and is com- 
 
158 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 posed of a letter taken from one of the names of each of the gods 
 Bruhma, Vishnoo, and Sheve. None but Brahmuns are allowed to 
 pronounce this sacred name. The boys in school, however, are taught 
 to write it. Gunputtee is worshipped by the Mahratta people as much 
 as any of the gods of India. The images are made of brass or cop- 
 per; but for the annual festival they are made of clay, and vary in the 
 price and beauty, to suit the taste and purse of the buyer. The trade 
 in gods is a cash trade. No Hindoo buys an idol, or hires a palankeen 
 for the annual celebration, without being prompt in paying for all. 
 Their gods, as well as their temples, are out of debt. Yea, more ; the 
 Priests of the temple are provided for. In all this, they put to shame 
 many professing Christians, who, not only worship God in houses 
 loaded with a heavy debt, but also meanly support their ministers, be- 
 cause they must pay the interest on their debt or forfeit their house. 
 When will God's people act wisely in this thing 1 
 
 NOTE C— Page 32. 
 
 THE YOGEE OR FAKEER. 
 
 Throughout India there is a vile set of men who are known by the 
 names Yogees, Sunyasees or Beiragees, among the Hindoos; and a 
 corresponding set among the Mohammedans, called Fakeers. As a 
 general thing, they are an abominable class of men. They wear but 
 little clothing, and many of them go nearly naked. This is done to 
 convince the people that their holiness has subdued all the natural 
 feelings of humanity within them. But their conduct in secret contra- 
 dicts their public profession of deadness to the world. They are arrant 
 hypocrites. This mode of life is, in the majority of cases, chosen be- 
 cause the man is sure of a support from the alms of the people, and 
 he is thus enabled to lead a life of comparative indolence, besides being 
 worshipped as a god by the people. 
 
 The Yogee here represented is a good specimen of the class. His 
 arm has been bound in its present position so long, that it cannot be 
 altered. The flesh has withered, and the nails have grown to a won- 
 
NOTES. 159 
 
 derfuJ length. It is no longer of any practical use to him, except to 
 exhibit his self-righteousness and pride. His business is to beg. In 
 that way he expects to enter heaven ; and those who give him alms, 
 may expect to enter heaven also, and be happy in proportion to the 
 amount contributed. So he tells them. This man was a Bengalee, 
 and was to be seen some years ago walking through the streets of 
 Calcutta. While the Rev. Mr. Percival and Hodson, Wesleyan mis- 
 sionaries, were one day preaching to the natives on the bank of the 
 Ganges, this man appeared in the crowd and became a listener. Mr. 
 H. sketched his likeness while Mr. P. preached to him and to the com- 
 pany the truth as it is in Jesus. It is very correct, and while it gives 
 a good likeness of the devotee, it shows also the hatefulness of that 
 system of self-righteousness which leads men to hope for bliss here- 
 after, by torturing themselves here. 
 
 My object in referring to this specimen of deluded humanity, is to 
 show the reader that if a member of the body be rendered inactive, 
 it will become useless. So also with inactive professors in the Church 
 of God. They are our Christian Yogees; and many of them are just 
 as useless in promoting the spirituality of the Church of Christ, as the 
 Yogee himself. Happy would it be for the Church if such were out 
 of her communion. 
 

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