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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1868
THE MEDICINE OF PRAYER.
A celebrated surgeon of this city, of the gene
ration just past, not a professor of religion, nor
much like one, has been known to beg the earn
est prayers of a minister of the gospel visiting
one of his patients, who had just submitted to
one of those heroic performances with the knife
for which the surgeon was famous. " Give us,"
said the worldly, but anxious surgeon, " one of
those effectual prayers of faith for the recovery of
the sick, which have such promises of reward."
The prayer was offered, but the patient died.
Singular stories were told, some seven years ago,
of Dorothea Trudel's Refuge, in Germany, for
the sick, who were cured by her persevering
prayers, and a book was published, detailing the
circumstances, some of which were certainly re
markable.
Thus there is an uncertainty about the direct
remedial efficacy of prayer, while, nevertheless,
the promise, James v.: 15, does encourage us to
use it as a means of recovery in connection with
other and more ordinary means. Believing
prayer for the sick has just as good a warrant for
expecting an answer, as prayer for any other tem
poral good. It must be offered in humble sub
mission to the divine will, and with unshaken
faith, although the answer may not be in the very
line of our desires. "It cannot be taken," says
Mr. Barnes, in commenting on the passage ".in
the absolute and unconditional sense, for then, if
these means were used, the sick person would al
ways recover, no matter how often he might be
sick, and he need never die. The design is to
encourage . . to the use of these means, with
a strong hope that it would be effectual."
We may not be clear, therefore, on this point;
but in the general position, that prayir deserves
a place as a remedial agent, as truly as any fa
mous herb or mineral, in the materia
there ought to be the most unwavering confidence.
The physician himaelf needs it to guide and clear
his mind, and steady his nerves in critical cases;
to guide him through the often profoundly ob
scure region of experiments which the uncer
tainty of his profession compels him to make; to
give him that elevation and courage which his
work, as a foe of the arch-enemy death, requires.
At that Beene of languishing and pain, of uncer
tainty and peril, that border-land of the grave,
that vestibule of the house of mourning, that
spectacle of human weakness and of the creature
made subject to vanity,—the sick-bed,--what ex
ercise so appropriate as that of
,humbly acknow+.
ledging dependence on God, and .of pleading for
His favor in restoration to health, in forgiveness
of sins, in the sanctification of trials, in calming
the mind, in preparation for death if it is to come ?
The right sort of medical practice will always en
courage the right' sort of prayer at the sick-bed,
as part of its own instrumentality.
For the secondary, reflex effects of believing
prayer are incontestibly, of a character to relieve,
, omfort, refresh and restore the sick:- Prayer
,alms the disturbed` mind' by rolling its burdens
tpon God; prayer gives rise to a sense of the Di
rine presence and sympathy; prayer is felt some
tow to bring the Divine omnipotence and wis
. upon the field where the powers of man are
soon exhausted and baffled. If there be any
sue, in the judgment of the physician, in a
1, composed, hopeful frame, of mind and des-.
:y of feelings, and in the absence of vexation
restlessness from the patient, then belieiring
ir, as the great instrument in producing
results, must be reckoned as holdinc , a high
among real remedial agents.
.n these periods of intense exertion of the ner
energies, perhaps the type of disease most
sly prevalent, is Nervous. Disorders at
. that part of the bodily system which lies, as
were, on the very borders of the mind. Disease
in fact, very often almost a direct result of the
of a praying,, i. e. trustful, spirit. It is be
) men forget God, forget their dependence
him for wealth and worldly comfort, forget
man does not live by bread alone, but by
7 word that proceedeth out of the mouth of
1, that they, so , Often tc breakdown." The
ishicent of prayerlessness, the natural conse-
Ice of prayerlessness, :runs ,in a dark line
lugh a large part of the sickness of oar day.
turn to prayers mist, therefore, be of the
of a specific forjust : the prevalent type of
ss. It is by returning to God that, the
18 ague and fever. will, most likely, be
1, the unwholesome ardor of the brain
~ and the whole brood of anxieties that are
tg on the nervous system be put 'to_
are no advocates , of an anti-worldiyiunee.
PHILADELPHIA, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1868.
terprising style of piety, in or out of the Church.
We ask not for any abatement of business ener
gy. To pray well is to work well. But we veri
ly believe that the quietism of the Quakers has
not a little to do with the general superiority
which they have hitherto enjoyed in health, in
good development of body, and in longevity. We
shall fare better, every way, for living in that
daily, hourly trust in, and submission;to God's
will and wisdom, which is called " prayer without
ceasing.". We ask only for the abandonment of
the godless eagerness with which men pursue
worldly ends; we protest, in the interests of bodi
ly health, against enterprise or pleasure which
has not time to give one day in seven to prayer,
which excuses itself from family worship from
want of time, and which recklessly drives on the
machinery of body and soul, without waiting to
drop upon it that oil of prayer which. is to save
it from grinding, and jarring and crushing upon
itself until it becomes a hopeless ruin.
THE CHURCH RE-ENTERING ON HER
WORK.
The heats of the summer are passing away,
and returning autumn reminds us, laborers in
Christ's kingdom, that the season of our more
special concentrated efforts for the salvation of
men has returned. Business men lay their plans
early. At the headquarters of the fashicins, styles
are decided upon and the manufacturers begin to
prepare their goods for the season, months before
they will be in the hands of consumers. Pub
lishers of magazines and periodical literature
have much of the matter for several issues on
hand, before the first appears. Every one in
creases his efficiency by wise forethought. The
work of the church is a conflict; we must study
the ground, lay our plans and make our disposi
tions betimes, and not go at it "as the horse
rusheth into the battle."
The workers in the pulpit and out of it must
consider their present capacities, their Fast fail
ures, their increased experience. They must re
gard the vast and varied, capabilities of the truth
which is their instrument and while e,sret. loyal
to the.grand.and faithful saying, which is the
core of the Gospel, that Sesta Christ : came into
the world to save sinners, they must, like well-in
t
structed scribes, bring for,th things new and old
from their treasures.
They must also study the ground they are to
work upon, the peculiar result to be achieved, the
difficulties in the way . . There are hard fields to
be cultivated demanding fresh supplies of cour
age, faith and
.prayer,; there are old and decay
ing churches to be nursed into vitality; there are
distracted congregations to be harmonized and
shamed out of,their antagonisms in the, face of a
common foe; there are new and struggling en
terprises •demanding toils and prayers and tears;
there are individual cases of peculiar interest'ancl
requiring varied applications of truth and forms
of effort; there are the masses of our thickly pop
ulated regions demanding the most thorough,
ably conducted and powerful efforts , - for their
evangelization 'To work friends ! for God and
for the, soul, in the Sabbath, School,,in the pulpit,
by the roadside, in the dwelling, and with versatility
of means and courage of spirit, by all means, save
1. Do not be discouraged by the, excitements of
the political campaign. We,doubt whether any
one.who believes the Bible to be .the friend of
justice and of equal rights, i smuch disturbed at
the sort of influence Which an active canvass for
and against these objects will bave upon the
spirituality of the people. Do not be timorous at
the prevalence of any such excitement. We doubt
not you will find that the men who are engaged
and animated on such themes, will make better
listeners to a stirringGoaper sermon than those
who are droning along in the old, beaten chan
nels of common life. Do you be awake for the
great objects of your calling, and you will have less
difficulty than usualin keeping your hearers awake.
But if you lo , e heart and show' no'excitement
for their souls', sake and the Gospel, their apathy
is likely enough to be uncommonly sad in/uch
period.
One of our most active and successful pastors
gives it, as his experience, that a period of excite
went about any thing worthy to employ men's
minds, is more faVorable to ministerial success;
and the statistics of the results of his labors prove
his position. At all events, do not let any failure
at such a season, be attributable to yourself.
2. Consider your present enootragements to
work Our church growth in the past is Most cheer
ing. True, when compared with the needs of the
world and the high mission of Christians, it is
far from exhilarating. But compared with our
own history, in the past, it shows decided progress.
Our net gain, last year, was over seven ihonsansi;
that of the raF before was eleven thousand,,snd
that of 18C-6, six thousand seven hundred. The
gain for three years is far greater than for any
three of our existence, and is over three times as
great as for the three years immediately preced
ing. Compared with the other branch, our per
centage of gain for last year has been as 4 to 3,
and for the last two years has been almost as
2 to 1. In this city, our pulpits are manned with
zealous, able, evangelical preachers, commanding
the confidence and attracting the regards of the
people, whose preaching has been and doubtless
will again be in demonstration of the Spirit and
with power. Let us do our part to evangelize
this great city.
3. We cannot overlook the singular illustra
tion of the power of the Gospel, in one of the
worst neighborhosds of the
,city of New York.
The keeper of a vile house of entertainment on
Water Street near Roosvelt, known as "the Wa
ter Street dance house king," some weeks ago,
allowed the enterprising ageUts of a city mission,
who fefr not to go anywhere, to hold a prayer meet
ing iutis saloon. Some of the abandoned inmates
were deeply affected and exressed a desire' to
live a new life. Soon it was whispered abroad
that the proprietor himself ' as so far influenced
by the truth, as to purpose ti e abandonment of
a.
his vile business. On the 1 t Saturday in Au
gust his house was closed as a' place of business
and opened as a place of blic daily prayer.
Great numbers of the lowes sort of the
,popu
lation have attended. The sti et has been blocked
tip by the• crowd who could n t get inside. The
windows of neighboring housea of the same sort
are thrown open and filled with faces of listeners.
Long before the hour for °peal i ng, the rooms have
been thronged. The prayer r ineeting seems to.
have been conducted with as•iinuch judgment and
propriety as the ' sudden and 'unusual' exigeitcy
allows. `Sailors haie related God's dealings with
their souls in their'own quaint 'way. Wall St.
Christian men have been the e, to intimate their
practical interest in any plan for the permanent
renovation of the place. An a powerful impres
sion has Been made on the urrounding neigh
,
bprhood. Whatever moistureof human weakness
Way be in all this, the.fingeslpf God seems to be
in it alsci. 'May it prove thiharbinger of a great
movement among the hitherto lost masses of 'our .
city population. Let us take it as a hint in the
shaping of our evangelizing efforts during the
coming fall and winter.
MORE CIRCULARS.
Our brethren of the, other branch, including
leading men in the majority at Albany last May,
have been apparently uncomfortable about the
adoption of the Retinion' ; Committee's - Report by
the Asembly evQr , since it was done,. Imme=
diately after adopting the report by a heavy vote,
that Assembly declared its dissatisfaction with
its Own, act;•and< voted that it Preferred something
different in the first' or 'principal article of the
Basis. After attempting in vain to to bring bur
Assembly to a, airuilar r expressiou of opinion, they
allowed their. action in adopting the Joint Com
mittee's report to stand, and 'confirmed it, in
important particular's, by the Answer to the Pro
test. • ,
But they were still uneasy at the boldness and,
unwonted liberality of their 'fiction. They had.
scarcely 'got well *at home before a Circular ab
peared; dated at Pittsburg, fugned by Reunion
men end, others not, believed so favorable, pre
senting the issue which had bben defeated in the
Assembly to the Presbyteries'and urging them
in both bodies, to express a preference, if they
felt it, to the Confession "pure and simple," as a
doctrinal basis, above the doctrinal article 1)f the
Assemblies' basis.
'Naturally enough,this`was viewed by many as
. .
an unwarrantable attempt• to alter the actual issue
of the Joint Committee's plan, which, by vote of
both .A:Ssemblies, is alone properly before the
Presbyteries. The Confession of Faith is already
proMinent in the joilt CoMmittee's Basis, and
the mode subSeription to it, not the Confes
aim!, itself, is the real and needful matter of the
Committee's clauses.
Pressed by objections on every side, the friends
of, this movement- have foun,d,it„needful to issue,
another supplementary circular,which we believe
pates from Cincinnati, where the air is popularly
supposed to be clearer than .in Pittsburg. In
this last circular, further dfreetions ire given, as,
to 'how the Presbyteries of the other hraneh who
do not like all parts, •of- the Joint Committee's
plan may express that dislike, without putting
themselves on record against thn plan as a Whole.
It is proposed that they; vote on each article of
the Basis' separately, and then that they vote on.
two Resolutions, which ;are a request that the
Old School Assembly of 1869 renew its efforts to
get our bOdy'to erase the Eiplanatori Clauses
the first article.
In all this struggle we are calm lookers-on We
shall adopt the Joint Committee's plan,' - as handed
down by both Assemblies to the Presqteries.
If our 0. S. brethren, even the Reunion Men,
repudiate their own adopted plan, on which thei r
agreed solemnly to go into the struggle with uS;
and if they encourage this scattering and squa.u
dering of interest, to -please _an impracticable
minority, and so contribute to the defeat of the
plan, our own people, with the patience charac
teristic of them, may consent, and for the sake
of Reunion, take whatever amended plan the
other branch finally concludes to offer,—but if
we do not, then the world will know on whom
the responsibility lies; viz.: on the great majority
at Albany, that had not the courage to stick to
their principles, and that flinched at last before
the small but able minority that has so long
swayed the body. •
FROM OUR ROCHESTER CORRESPONDENT.
• OBITUARY.—Another of the good and true
men of our State—Simeon Bgnjamin—has gone
to his rest. He died on the Ist instant, at River
Head, Long Island, where he had been spend
ing a few weeks among the scenes and friends of
his childhood. His remains reached Elmira on
Thursday, and his funeral was to be attended
this day from the Ist Presbyterian church in
which he has long been a pillar and an office
bearer.
Mr. Benjamin settled in Elmira in 1833. He
had previously been a merchant in New York,
where he bad accumulated considerable property.
On coming to Elmira he invested largely in real
estate, which added much to his fortune ; and in
that city; and bran Western New York, he has
ever since been known as one of the most earn
est, 'active, and useful of men. He, was a man
of public •spirit, doing much for the- welfare of
the chosen place of his residence, and for every
cause of benevolence. He was Corporate Mem
ber of the American Board, and gave much to
the cause of Missions.
But, that to which in later years'- he has
given special attention, was the Elmira Female
College Hetmay be.called, we believe, the ifoun
der and chief support of that admirable institu-.
tion. To that he gave his thoughts, his time, his
money, almost without limit. For years, we are
told, he supplied all deficiencies in its annual re
ceipts. He watched over it, as though it had
been one of his own children.. His gifts to, it
are supposed to be, in the aggregate, about
$30,000.
He was also an upright man, a sincere Chris
tian, and died in peace at the Mature age of
seventy-two years. He had been for some time
feeble, evidently failing, and his friends feared
to have him undertake„ his annual visit to his
birth-place; and yet he was so anxious to go,
that the journey was finally made, but proved to
be his last. His pilgrimage thus ended where it
began. He had completed the circle, and a little
more, of three score and ten years, His death
was so peaceful that the attendants did not for
some minutes-perceive that he was gone. "So
He giveth his.beloved sleep." • • .
,Death has also been' busY in Canandaigua.
Hon. 'Francis' Granger,• fortnerly'one of the fore
moat men of this,region, well known also in all
the political world, died on then 28th ult., at 80
years of , his age. i.Vle was formerly the rival' of
Wm. H. Seward as leader of •the,Whig party in•
the State, and. their:nominee •fore' Governor: In
more , recent years he had been: associated with
the Democratsj
His' son, Gideon Giyinger, a most genial, use
ftirChistiah Man; of about forty-five years; 'was
lying dangerously ill at the same time, and died
On 'Thursday of this week. He was a man of
wealth, of Culture, of leisure, and of gre'at.be
nevolence; universally beloved and universally
lamented. Even in the Episcopal_ and Catholic
churches prayers were offered for his recovery;
while in the Congregational ,church, where he
was, a member and an ornament, he is mourned as
a brother beloveA. The poor loved,amLhonored
him. He was the friend of
MORE ADMIRABLE READING.--We had• some
thing to say of one'good book last week, and we
now feel inclined to speak' of another. " Ten
Years upon the Diphrates, by C. H. Wheeler,
MisSionarY of the American Board." This
seems. to 'us, iu,Some respects at least ; the most
important Missionary book yet issued. It cer
tainly. is one of . the most readable - and' most sat-,
isfactory, even though it bears of bcing,
prepared in great haste.
,It is from the
,pen,
however,,of a man, who' does everything with all
his mig'ht. Whateverileisure he might have had
would prOba.bli have 'Made no difference . in the
style of the book.•' Its 'pages glow with furn4ce
heat.
An 4 yet it took tea years of bar 3 , untiri ng
Genesee Evangelist. No. 1164.
J Ministers $2.50 H. Miss. $2.00
Address:-1334 Chestnut Street
and successful work to gather the materials. It
is a succinct, graphic, touching story of devoted
Missionary labors. The book ought to be read
by every lover of the cause of Missions. and
much more by those who care nothing for it.
It is instructive, encouraging, and inspiring. It
shOws how the knowledge of the Lord may
cover the earth much sooner than many have
dared to suppose it would.
PERSONAL.
Rev Amer D.D., of Ithaca, now, we
believe, in the 86, t year of his age, has been
passing a few days city. He is still re
markably vigorons. ite .s settled in this city
as pastor of the Second ch4eh—now the Brick
—in 1831. •He had previously preached for
fifteen years in Ithaca, where he commenced his
labors in 1816. , His ministry thus extends over
a period of fifty-two years. He still. preaches
occasionally, and will be remembered as having
spoken often and vigorously at the meeting of
the American Board last fall in Buffalo.
Prof. Upson, of Hamilton College, preached,
most acceptably to the Central Church of this
city last Sabbath, in the absence of the pastor.
His morning sermon was especially spoken of, as
instructive and inspiring in thought, beautiful in
arrangement, language, and imagery, as well as
charming in delivery. He is a welcome preacher
in our city.
Rev. Dwight W. Marsh, after preaching for a
year in Illinois, returns to oar city to take charge
of the Rochester Seminary for Young Ladies,
with which he was connected before going West.
He and his wife are admirable instructors, and
will make their school one of a high order.
Rev. Dr. Knox, of Rome, has had substantial
evidence of the good feeling and kindly care of
his people. The parsonage has been nicely re
modelled in part, and refitted, greatly to the
comfort of the occupants. His study is especially
admirable in arrangement and furnishing.
Rev. E. L. Boing, formerly of Angelica,, has
been appointed District Secretary of the Church
Erection Cdnamittee for Western New York, to
reside in this city.
Rev. G. P. -Hamilton, whose call to the Pitts
ford
church we mentioned last week, has accepted
the invitation given him, and is to enter at once
upon pastoral labors in the new field.
There are two Beadle's—Hon. and Rev. J. T.
and Rev. P. C. The former is 'the most famous'
writer; author of Napoleon and his Marshals;
Washington and his Generals; ,Saered Moun
tains, and other works. The latter is a younger,
brother, a worthy minister of the Gospel, writer
of the Life of Josephine and other small books.
It is the latter also who .has recently pu'alished
The Court. and Camp of David, in imitation of
Napoleon and his Marshals by J. T.,, the older
brother. see that the book notices some
times confound the two, and seem to think that
all the books that bear the Headley name are
from one prolific :pen, that which so glowingly
eulogized the "Little Captain!' We happen to
know that J. T. prefers credit for his own worki,,
and no others; and .we . presume P. C. does. not
relish being ignored altogether..
Rochester, Sept., ` 5, 1868
NEW CITY: POSTAL ARRANGEMENT.
As .a result of recent explanatory legislation
upon the: Post Office 'laws in , Conness;' procured
by the personal' efforts' and . correipondence of a
few persons Connected with -the religious - press in
this city, we are now able to use the Post Office
for the ..City distribUtion 'of our papers, thus les
sening,the expense to a large class, of our subscri,
bers. From and .after the' Ist of , October, the
fifty cents additional, hitherto charged in the city,
will be abolished, and the 'papers will be served•
by-letter-carriers in all,parts of the city at five
cents per quarter; ox may be had free of charge,
by calling at the Post Office. Subscribers hay-
In any preferences in, the matter will please give
us due,notice; -
,
War The new Epificopalian Church: of the
Holy Apostles," which has been worshipping for
some months past in the lecture room' of Tabor
Church, has secured `a lot at' Twenty-first and
Christian streets.. Mr. ,John Rice has erected
for theM, at his own expense, a temporary wooden
house of worship (or, in Philadelihia parlane
" a framebuilding,") to accommodate 300 or 400
people. The vestry will, erect and furnish a
school building in the rear. The chapel was
opened last Sabbath with appropriate services by
Rev. Chas. D. Cooper, the rector. There is no
other churoh of the denomination west of Thir
'teenth and south of Lombard.
Se• Phillips Brooks is not going to Boston..
GiIESEE