IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) :^-. 1.0 I.I 1.25 He 32 V _ I" m If i^ 1.4 IM IM M 1.6 .%^ ^W^ <$> /^ c^ :% ^. <<^ Photographic Sciraces Corporation s 4^^ ^^ iV 93 WIST MAIN STRIIT WEBSTER, NY 14580 (716) 873-4S03 ^ ^ 6^ -*. i m. V M.^ w'o ^* 1 o \ CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVI/ICIVIH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut canadien de microreproductions historiques 1Qft7 I Technical and Bibliographic Notes/Notes techniques et bibliographiques The Institute has attempted to obtain the best original copy available for filming. Featurus of this copy which may be bibiiographically unique, which may alter any of the images in the reproduction, or which may significantly change the usual method of filming, are checked hetow. a Coloured covers/ Couvertura de coulaur □ Covers damaged/ Couvertura endommag^o □ Covers restored and/or laminated/ Couverture lestaur^e et/ou pellicul^e □ Cover title missing/ Le titre de couvertur jre manque I ' .oloured maps/ — I Caites g^ographiques en couleur a Coloured ink (i.e. other than blue or black)/ Encre da couieur (i.e. autr^ que bleue ou noire) □ Coloured plates and/or illustrations/ Planches et/ou illustrations en couieur □ Bourn Reli* D G D Bound with other material/ avec d'autres documents Tight binding may cause shadows or distortion along interior margin/ Lareliure serree peut causec de I'ombre ou de la distorsion Is long da la marge intirieure Blank leaves added during restoration may appear within the text Whenever possible, these have been omitted from filming/ II se peut que certainas pages blanches ajouties lors dune restauration apparaissent dans le texts, mais, lorsque cela 4tait possible, ces pages n'ont pas iti fitm^es. Additional comments:/ Commantaires supplAmentairas: L'Institut a microfilme le meilleur exemplaire qu'il lui a ete possible de se procurer. Las details de cet exemplaire qui sont peiu-dtre uniques du point d^ vue bibliographique, qui peuvent modifier une image reproduite. ou qui peuvent exivjer une modification dans la m^thode normale de filmage sont indiqu^s ci-dessous. I I Coloured pages/ Pages de couieur Pages damaged/ Pages endommagees □ Pages resto'ed and/or laminated/ Pages restaurees et/ou pelliculees 1/ Pages discoloured, stained or foxed/ Pages d^coloiees, tachetdes ou piquees I I Pages detached/ Pages detachees Showthrough/ Transparence Quality of prir Qualita inigale de I'impression Includes supplementary materit Comprend du materiel supplementaire Only edition available/ Seule Edition disponible r~l Showthrough/ r~n Quality of print varies/ I I Includes supplementary material/ r~n Only edition available/ D Pages wholly or partially obscured by errata slips, tissues, etc.. have been refilmed to ensure the best possible image/ Les pages totalement ou partiellement obscurcies par un feuillet d'errata. une pelure. etc.. cnt 6t6 film^es ^ nouveau de facon a obtanir la meilleure image possible I This item is filmed at the reduction ratio checked below/ Ca document est film* au taux de reduction indiqu* ci dessous. 10X 14X 18.; 22X 12X 16X 20X 26X 30X 24X 28X 32X The copy filmed here has been reproduced thanks to the generosity of: Harold Campbell Vaughan Memorial Library Acadia University The images appearing here are the best quality possible considering the condition and legibility of the original copy and in keeping with the filming contract specifications. Original copies in printed paper covers are filmed beginning with the front cover and ending on the last page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, or the back cover when appropriate. All other original copies are filmed beginning on the first page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, and ending on the last page with a printed or illuf^trated impression. The last recorded frame on each microfiche shall contain the symbol -hn> (meaning "CON- TINUED"), or the symbol V (meaning "END"), whichever applies. Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too largo to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to 'ight and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagran^s illustrate the method: L'exemplaire fllmd fut reproduit grSce d la g6n6rosit6 de: Harold Campbell Vaughan Memorial Library Acadia University Les images suivantes ont i6td reproduites avec le plus grand soin, compte tenu de la condition et de la nettetd de I'exemplaire film6, et en conformity avec les conditions du contrat de filmage. Les exemplaires originaux dont la couvoiture en papier est imprimde sont film6s en commen^ant par le premier plat et en terminant soit par la dernidre page qui comporte une empreinte d'impression ou d'illustration, soit par le second plat, selon ie cas. Tcus les autres exemplaires originaux sont film6s on commonpant par la premidre page qui comporte une empreinte d'improssion ou d'illustration et en terminant par la dernidre page qui comporte une telle empreinte. Un des symboles suivants apparaitra sur la dnrnidre image de cheque microfiche, selon le cas: le symbole — »- signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbole V signifie "FIN", Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre filmds A des taux de reduction diff6rents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul clichd, il est film6 d partir de Tangle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche d droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre vii'imagos ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la methods. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 nm REVIVALISM ^^9 AND The Church. AN ADDKE8S BY REVD. CHARLES CHAPMAN, M. A., CHAIRMAN OF THE Congregational Union of Ontario and Quebec. MONTREAL June 1876. CONGREGATIONAL UNION OF ONTA;^ro AND QUEBEC. ^IST^nSTTJ^Xj SESSIOlsT The first meeting of the Anmial Session of thiK body was lielii last evening in Zion Church. Tho proceedings opened with singing, fol- lowed by prayer l:)y the Rev. ,1. A. R. Dick- son, Toronto. Another hymn having been sung, tho Chairman of the I'nion, Rev. Chas. Chapman, delivered his ANNUAL AND PAIITIN(! ADDRESS, upon the eve of his departure for England, as already announced. The Rev. gentleman said — We are once more permitted in the kind Providence of (rod to meet together as pas- tors and delegates of our respective churches to seek by blended counsels and mutual en- couragement to carry forward more eft'ective- ly in this Dominion the holy work which ve believe has been Divinely entrusted to our hands : and, naturally, our iirst and most pronounced feeling, as we leHecton the past, is that of hearty thanks to our Merciful Father for having spared oui lives and con- tinued to us a place among those who love and serve Him. It is a good thing for a Christian man to die when maturity of char- acter and fulness of labours have qualified him for the higher service of the church above ; at tht^ same time, as long as we are conscious of ne-ding more holiness of life and have work on hand which we desire to bring to greater perfection, we cannot but deem it a nuriy to be spared a little longer; nor can we think of the snares and pitfalls, that lie concealed in our pathway, lud the '• li(ms and addiTs " that link by (iur side without a grateful sense of flit' care and lovi^ tiiat havi' kept our fei t fi<-m falling, our eyes from tears, aiirmity of Evangelical faith not surpassed in any (1. nomination, along with n respect for the moral intluence of combin d counsels, equivalent in its etfect to the most rigid con- formity to Church " laws," and, as we think, immensely superior in intrinsic worth. But in this very consciousness of freedom enjoyed by your Chairman there arises, as a moral counterpoise to the possible abuse of liberty, a deep senr^e of responsibility lest, by rash- ness, inadvertence or vain fondness for our own mental offspring, anything should be said or done that wouhi wantonly compro- mise others, or in any way be alien to the common purposes for whicli our annual meetings are held. It is under the combined intluence of this " liberty of prophesying" and sense of re- sponsibility that I ask your attention for a short time to a few observations on one of the features of modern religious life and our duties in relation thereto. When the ancient prophet was reminded of his office as a watchman on the towers of Zion to keep an eajjer e3'e upon all that might possibly affect the welfare of Israel ; when our Saviour directed His hearers to ob- serve the " signs of the times," there was, no doubt, laid down for Christians of all ages the imperative duty of studying the shifting phenomena of the religious world so as to be ready at once to correct what may be wrong, and develope to perfection what may be sound, in principle. Just as a statesman proves himself to be worthy of that honor- abli' designation by a quick and comprehen- sive apprehension of the tendencies that, at first in subtle forms, find expres- sion in political life, and then with strong will and skilful hand adapts his measures to the occasion : so we, as servants of Chiist, spending thought and putting forth effort for the e^itablishment of Hib kingdom, shall earn a right to our as- sumed distinction in so far as we scan the varying phenomena of the religious world with an intelligent eye, and are prepared to adjust our conduct to the requirements of the times. W^e all are convinced, in spite of what some partial students of Nature may hove said, that the fundamental principles of our religion lie deep down in the very con- stitution of things, and abide the same, un- altered and unalterable, amid all the changes apparent on the surface of human life. Yet, at the same time, the forms and phases of its manifestation are very intimately con- nected with man's intellectual and social condition, and consequently are liable to va- riations in proportion as inherited or acquired habitudes develope. It is an obvious corol- lary from thiy admission that if at any time there should exist in society mental and moral qualities defective in point of develop- ment or harmony, any strong movement of the deep and abiding principles of religion finding expression by means of those quali- ties, must, so far as this manifestation is con- cerned, be proportionately defective. And although religion fundamentally can never be shaken — though like the light it is ever light, and as a life is ever life — yet incalcu- lable damage may be done to its jirogress by reason of the purely tiuman aspects it is made by us to assume. Among the features of religions life con- spicuous in our age, if not peculiar to it, there is one deserving ot our most careful consideration, both because of the intrinsic value of the feeling embodied and the debatable character of some of the forms and methods by which that fci'ling is often (expressed — I refer to fnnirnl- nenK (o/(-aggressive mooil. The demand for zeal i of is so imperative in the kingdom of God tiiat | unfler truer they must wclco'ue it anywhere and every- where, lint at the same time they are not inseiisilile to tlie importance of toning down extraviigance by an infusion of church sobriety, and of gathering up the reputed re- sults of Kvangelistic effort for permanent service in the church. As observant cau- tious men, they cannot fail to notice. In the almost invariable incidents of llevivalism, a tendency to abnormal emotional develop- ments ; a growing craving for smart sensa- tional utterances ; an obvious unwillingness on the part of the prominent to recognize Church authority and order ; a disp()sition in manv converts to evade (piiet cntinuous w(jrld with forms of beauty ; and in the age of Lord Uacon the human intellect was aroused fnjin its deep slumbers to pursue afresh, with liriner step and guidance the lofty path science. N(ir can we doubt, what- ever opiidons may be entertained as to the ultimate form "it assumed, that it was a true and Heaven-born spirit that last century worked through Wesley and Whittietd and saved religion from being almost strangled by the hand of a hard, iinretlecting formalism. We surely are not so content with wVat we have already attained to and done as not to feel the need of a life more consistent in its tone and its aims with the solemn verities we l)roless to hold and the personal allegiance we liavi' sworn to our Lord. Neither as in- dividuals in our private walk with God, nor as parents among our childivin, nor as men of DUght a huddeii infusion into the full rights men, nor as memh-TS ot tiie cnurcn oi i^misi f niembersliip of jifrsons whose sincerity ] nrofessedly devoted body and soul to the in- lav he uiKiuestioned, but whose ai.titude for | tere.- not now discuss the whole of thi.-; (piestion. My in. sent purpo.se is to ])o'uit outtoyoutliat in this .state of things it be- comes our duty as pastors and ministers of chiirches to pay a vei}' rigorous attention to the condition of the church in respect to its spirit, its agencies, its internal development and its ministry ; and see how it is that there should exist such a /iriina facie reason for earnest, good members to come to he condu- 8 gion that the church as such is not now ade- quate to the initiation and carrying through of all that is required for the spiritual inter- ests of the world. There is something wrong in the church when even crude minds are not provV^d for in its agencies. The deficiency cannot all be on one side if good, earnest men do wrong by abstracting from the church the benefit of their energy and zaal. If there bo a tendency to get loose from the fellowship and joint action '^f the church, may there not be a weakness in church co- herence for which the church is itGelf respon- sible ? Because we happen to have been fortunate enough to have worked out well our f"octrinal position, it hy no means follows that our practical church life has ha \ the amount of study devoted to it that its im- portance demands. On the face of our pre- sent problem, it may, with much propriety, be asked whether our rigid adiierence in al- most evei-y instance, to the sole pastorate, is quite scriptural and prudent. Some wise men think W(! are guilty of a tremendous folly in expecting all the functions of pastoi. evangelist, teacher and bishop, to be dis- charged by one individual. The subordina- tion of the detailed development of the church to this modern monopoly of work is believed by many to be a fruitful cause of the wandering of}' of young and old, who cannot find in the fold the kind of nourishment and care their temperament or education ren- ders needful ; while it is to be feared that many, of whom better things might be ex- pected, have very little sympathy with an aggressive policy that shall provide for the wants of tlte masses. But while 1 think it import^mt for those who question the value of Ilevival'isni to look closely into the condition of tlu; church as being one of the concurrent occasions of what they profess to lament, tuere are aspects of the movement which demand the severest scrutiny of those who are enamoured with it, inasmuch as^ the> tend to impair whatever good there may otherwise be found in these exertions. It is not pleasant to indulge ii^ criticism of an adverse character where the motive of the criticism is a sincere desire to do the Will of (iod ; but, in addition to what has been already hinted at, there are signs of danger and weakness which ought to be fairly faced. Ts tlu're not, for instance, in the statistical reports of the number of con- verts of a given series of laeetiiigs, toe fre- quently a confusion with conversions to God of purel y psychological phenomena, the pro- duct of over-strained nerves at the close of a weary day ? A cool observer is ai)t to draw the conclusion that for stronger faith, is often placed in the effect of a crowd, of music, and of the outward eclat of a huge assembly than in the silent power of God's Truth. There are people who decline to believe that a vast thruug of mixed characters gives effi- cacy to prayer. Some, not careless Chris- tians, are apt to ask is it wise and prudent to expect regular church-goers who have dili- gently attended two public services, and per- haps the Sunday School, to attend at the close of Llie Sabbath another general meeting to hear appeals suited to those who have not been preached to already, and from persons who act on their own individual lesponsi- bility apart from church direction? It muf not iie wondered at if observant men regard such a precedurc as an implication that the worship and instruction of the church are not good and earnest enough, and that, therefore, the needed sup- plement must be sought elsewhere. There is, of course, a disposition in some Christians to lead a vagrant life — ever pass- ing from one supposed scene of excitement to another— it in highly probable that they will not gain in steadiness by diversions from their church-home, while both parents and employers now and then speak of the loosen- ing of domestic ties and interruption uf family worship by incessant spending of evening in public meet rs even to a late hour. Does not the manner in which ser- vices are sometimes conducted hold out a strong temptation to impulsive sui)erficial men to push forth their own crude notions .';? being the truth of God, and to reiteraie favor- ite phases of very questionable tendency ? It is naturally very difficult for persons who have been worked up to a remarkable degree of interest in the peculiar style of revivalism to cultivate a proper ta.ste for the .solid in- .struction and sober worship of the Church. Nor is the impression a wholesome one on men of the world when they witness, for a month or more, what se'.ms to them a tre- mendous commotion about eternal affairs, and then observe how all dies away to the former quietude. We cannot wonder if they should thii^.k of our religious convictions as being not very constant in their operation, or else as being of a character that cannot be maintained supreme and ab.sorbing above all others. And gianting that there are defects in our church life us it now is, that our teach- ing is too much framed for the re(}uirements of matured Christians and that the Church is not fully alive to the spiritual destitution of the masses who never enter the house of God — still the question comes is it the duty of those who are practically sworn to fidelity to their Church to seek to remedy this state of things by encouraging on every occasion what can- not but throw the Church o the shade ..s an evangelizin- power, anc thus commit a part of its divinely appointed work to a new and loose oiganization? It may be asked, what then are we to do ? Are we to abstain from attending united ef- forts. Are we to refuse to meet as bethren for special prayer? Must the 'are of the nan- I 9 churchigoing be left to persons who are mem- bers of no church whateve' ? Is our attitude to be one of indift'erence to the cravings of multitudes for a more stirring Evangelism ? Brethren, to us the answer is plain enough. Substantially, it is thif : Let the church du its own work, as a church, by all the legiti- mate processes placed within its province The church is the creation of Christ for the purpose of doing on earth the work He would do were He now living visibly here. It is His body, and through I he harmonious action of its members the deal are to be made to hear and the dead to rise. By the very act of having given to the church pastors, and teachers and Evangelists, as well as by