News and Miscellany

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Sep 30, 1873

News and Miscellany.

“Can ye not discern the signs of the times?”

Decline of Germany.

A German correspondent gives the following account of the social and moral results of the late war: “According to what I have observed and learned by friends, the late war thought so glorious in victories, has done great injury to the population in Germany on the whole; for Materialism, Rationalism, infidelity and immorality, are vastly increasing. Even the Prussian army, formerly distinguished for excellent discipline and moral superiority compared with other armies is now getting corrupted, and now losing its strength and valor. I am afraid that the sins that ruined France will ruin Germany, unless the whole nation earnestly seek to serve God instead of their own lusts. The best of the people see the corruption that increases, and mourn for their people and country, and pray for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and a general regeneration of the nation. It is the old truth over again. The conqueror loses in the end, and ruins himself by accepting and imitating the same follies and sinful practices of the nation he trod down. So it was with the Medes, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and I fear so it will be with the most civilized nations of the present time.”

The Chicago Advance takes alarm at the steady and rapid increase in the expenses of a college course, especially in the way of societies, clubs, excursions, regattas and graduation incidentals. The difficulty, it thinks, begins with high schools, which are fast coming to ape the colleges in graduation expenses, and springs from the increasing tendency to luxury in all American life, while it is aggravated by the rivalry between different colleges, and between successive classes in the same college. The Advance thinks that the matter must be regulated by the authorities, “partly by rule, and more by example and moral influence;” otherwise “the college will become the rich man’s property, and the sons of the poor will shun it, unless they are willing to be put to social shame.”

It is said that the entire Persian mission, with forty missionaries and sixty teachers now under the care of the Presbyterian Board, costs less annually than the current expenses of some of our city churches.

It is said that General Massey proposes as the theme of his lectures for the next season, the question, “Why doesn’t God kill the devil?” To which the Christian Secretary replies: “We suggest another query as worthy of our prior attention: Why does not God at once kill off every artful, scoffing, tempting, incorrigibly wicked man? There is scarcely more difficulty in the one “conundrum” than in the other.”

The “Methodist” on Methodist Worship.

We have no partiality for “pewed churches, fashionable music, and modern refinements in church generally.” Pewed churches grew out of financial necessities, which we hope to see met by a better system; and as to music, there is none comparable with the thousand voiced melody of a singing congregation. In all these respects, we prefer the old; because, to our thinking, “the old is better.” And it is because we are letting go the old that we speak of the present baldness of Methodist worship. What shall be done? If we go on at our present rate, worship will become for our people a pantomime—a mere make-believe. They will look on their hymn-books while a choir is doing the singing; they will bow their heads while the minister is doing the praying; during the rest of the service they will listen or not, as they feel inclined; then they will go home. If this is worship, we do not understand the meaning of the word. We call upon the critics, thinkers, scholars, to devise a remedy. Tell us not what we ought to do, but what we can do. The ideal ought may be an impossibility. If any one can go through the church, as a flame of fire, and restore to its worship the simple heartiness of forty years ago, we will welcome him as an angel from Heaven. We expect no such visitation and no such visitant. What once in our worship flowed out spontaneously must now be retained by education.—The Methodist.

Spasmodic Piety.

A quaint writer compares a certain class of professors of religion to “sheet-iron stoves heated by shavings.” When there is a little reviving in the church they all at once flame up and become exceedingly warm and zealous. They are ready to chide the pastor and the brethren for their coldness and want of activity. But alas! the shavings are soon burned out, and then the heat goes down as it went up. They are never seen in the prayer-room or more spiritual meetings of the church again, until there is another excitement. If such people had not souls of their own to be saved, they would not be worth taking into the church. If they are saved, it must be “as by fire.”