Is The Power Of The Pulpit On The Wane?

Auckland Star, Volume LXXV, Issue 60, 11 March 1944, Page 4

Is The Power Of The Pulpit On The Wane?

WHAT is the general standard of congregational intelligence? Does the standard vary very much between the various churches? By churches in this instance I don't mean denominations, hut rather memberships. Do Christian people read along right lines? Can what they are reading now he calculated to add to their standard of intelligence? Of the flood of books that is pouring forth from publishing houses, even in war time, on the By Ret). C. W. Chandler

subject of religion, what proportion is being read by our congregations? In these days of short sermons, what are they accomplishing? Is the average sermon just an emotional appeal, and are our congregations suffering from "flooded carburettors?" Plenty of spirit but not enough spark? Judging- by pulpit advertisements in the daily Press I should say that there is far too much "choke." The Christian message is being lavishly dispensed from every conceivable angle, again and again, and in my opinion there is too much "feed" for the motor to start.

Preaching to a Standstill One does occasionally hear of ministers preaching themselves dry, and welcoming a change of congregation. in order to gain fresh inspiration. I wonder if congregations ever get preached dry. What is the cumulative effect of sitting in the same pew twice every Sunday, "under" the same preacher for ten years? Is the spiritual food rich enough in vitamin content to assure that the congregation doesn't suffer from malnutrition, for after all one can over-eat and still suffer from that complaint. I am frankly of the opinion that congregations which depend upon the pulpit almost exclusively for their spiritual diet, are definitely in an unhealthy condition, and this is not intended as a reflection on my brother clergy, whom I know give of their best continually.

What I am leading up to is a consideration of the power of the pulpit in our own day as compared with its power in the days of Moody and Talmadge. I believe its power is waning. Not because we haven't still got our Moodies and Talmadges, but because the setting has changed entirely.

Not "so Itng ago the churches of England were, outside the universities, the cultural centres of England. The parson was the scholar and the gentleman in the centre of every small community. Nowadays people can sit and "listen in," and read to their hearts content, and as a result of this, serious thinking on any one subject, including religion, is on the decline.

I suggest a Remedy

I want now to suggest how this downward trend can be stopped, and I must content myself with only one suggestion on this occasion. I think that every Church should possess a first rate library. The intellectual quality of any congregation can be determined by what it reads. At present, I am of the opinion that congregations don't read the books they should be reading. Too many of us are content with entertaining rubbish, and for Christians to be satisfied with that sort of reading is definitely sinful. These Church libraries should be stocked with the best that can be procured upon the subject of religion from every available angle. I would even include some books on the case against us. To know something of the other fellow's point of view, invariably strengthens one's own. Neither the pulpit nor the radio can provide what sound reading can supply in the way of knowledge and inspiration. With such a library once started, preferably in the porch of the Church, it should not take the minister very long to discover what is being read, and such information would be invaluable to him in the preparation of future sermons, and in general conversation with his parishioners. The truth is that so much is being and has been read in the way of light, trashy fiction that very few people can apply themselves to the reading of a book that requires real thought on the part of the reader. This is a serious trend, and it should be stemmed by the Church if she wants to hold even an intelligent minority that is bound to drift if something along these lines is not tackled at once.

Look for the counter of religious books in any of our larger bookshops, and see how small and unattractive it is by comparison with other counters. If people who call themselves Christians were reading along Christian lines, not exclusively, but at least consistently, we should find this position reversed. The institution of Church libraries such as I suggest would also lead to religion being carried into the homes of our people, and beinjj discussed intelligently as an ordinary topic of conversation, which is far from being the case to-day. Having opened a library of this character during the past month, I can testify to the astonishing results that are already being shown. If the true university in these days is a collection of books, then let every Church porch be a small university.