FIRST CHURCH DEDICATED IN NEBRASKA.
By Editor
The first church dedication in this Territory took place lately at Nebraska City. The dedication sermon was preached by Eld. Goode, after which a collection for the purpose of paying off the debts of the church was taken up. Our Eastern readers may be surprised at the fact that in our little church away off here in Nebraska, the sum of $800 was raised on last Sunday morning by collection. The church belongs to the Methodist Episcopal denomination. It is 60 by 40 feet, and the inside of it has been finished off in a style which cannot be surpassed even in the older States.—N. Y. Tribune. It may be thought by our First-day friends that the above contains an instance of compliance with the injunction of the Apostle in 1 Cor. xvi, 1, 2. But what particularly strikes us is the items which the writer has thought worthy of mention. It matters not whether the Spirit and blessing of God attended the preacher or the members on the occasion, but, the house "has been finished off in a style that cannot be surpassed." It is another fact corroborative of what many church-members and divines have been ready to admit, that the popular religion of the day is a hollow shell of externals and formality.