BAPTIST CENTENNIAL.
Three Baptist Associations—Centennial Year and Jubilee Year—Baptists
Seen at their Best—Doctor Alexander Maclaren—Matchless
Eloquence—Hon. John Bright Delivers an Address—Boundless
Enthusiasm—English Hospitality—A Home with the Mayor.
THE Yorkshire, Lancashire and Cheshire Baptist Associations are now
holding a joint meeting in this city of Rochdale. The Yorkshire
Association was organized in 1787, and covered at that time all the
territory that is now embraced within the three Associations above
named, the division having occurred by common consent in 1837.
This is therefore the centennial year for the Yorkshire, and the
semi-centennial year for the Lancashire and Cheshire Associations.
This is also the English Jubilee year, being the fiftieth year of the
reign of Queen Victoria. Hence this meeting is called “The Baptist
Centennial and Jubilee Celebration.” It is said to be the grandest
Baptist meeting ever held in England. It represents the brains and
culture of our denomination in this country.
They are more formal in their methods of conducting the business of the
body than is customary among American Baptists. The program is made
out and printed beforehand. The speeches are all “cut and dried.” The
moderator asks a particular man to make a certain motion, and then
specifies another one and asks him to second the motion. The present
meeting is mainly taken up with historical and biographical discussions.
As a rule, the delegates are men of fine natural powers and scholarly
attainments. Most of them are fluent speakers, though very few of their
number can be called eloquent or even forcible. It is natural that on
this occasion the speakers should indulge freely in self gratulations.
They are proud of their history, and especially of their ancestors who
made their history. And well they may be. Their ancestors were men of
backbone, of nerve and stamina! Unlike many men of the present day,
they _believe something_! Their convictions were deep, strong, pungent!
Their convictions were strong enough to lead them to the stake. And
then they had the courage of their convictions. They were not ashamed
to let the world know what they believed.
In some respects, I regard the present Baptists of England as unworthy
sons of their distinguished ancestors. They boast of their progress,
of their broad sympathies, and liberal views; that they have gotten
away from the bones of theology to the gospel of Christ; that they no
longer preach of God’s avenging wrath, but rather of His forgiving
mercy. These English Baptists are good men, and they preach the gospel
as far as they go; but they do not go far enough. Jehovah is a God of
justice as well as of mercy. A body of theology without bones is as
useless as a human body without bones. They seem to be sadly lacking in
that deep, heart-felt conviction, and in that sturdy, lion-like courage
which immortalized their forefathers. They have well-nigh ceased to
preach our distinctive doctrines as Baptists, and God, I believe, as
a consequence, is withholding His blessings from them. Within the
bounds of these three Associations, live more than one-fourth of the
population of England, and yet the Associations report only 34,000
members. A church may believe and practice whatever she pleases as to
communion (and other things too, I suppose), and still secure or retain
membership in any of these Associations.
The leading features of the meeting are as follows: An address on
“Reminiscences of Associational Teachers in 1837,” by Rev. John Aldis;
the Centennial Sermon, by Dr. Alexander Maclaren, and an address on
“Sunday Schools,” by the Right Hon. John Bright, Member of Parliament.
Mr. Aldis is a remarkable man. He has been in the ministry sixty
years, and still retains much of the strength and enthusiasm of youth.
Possessing such splendid gifts, and having been so long connected with
the Associations, there is no man living better able to perform the
task assigned to him than the venerable John Aldis. The address is a
model of condensation. The speaker was almost as laconic as the tramp
who called, late one evening, at a country residence, and said to the
lady of the house: “Madam, will you please give me a drink of water?
I am so hungry I don’t know where I am going to sleep to-night.” I
wonder that one can say so much in so short a time. There is scarcely
a superfluous word from beginning to end. It is marked, too, by great
literary excellence, and contains some delightful bits of character
sketches.
Doctor Maclaren is at his best. I doubt whether he ever preached a
better sermon than the one he delivers at this meeting. He warns his
brethren that there is danger ahead, that false theories are creeping
into their creeds, that it will never do to cut loose from the “old
moorings.” He says in substance: “Brethren, the cold winds from the
icy caves of Socinianism are chilling our blood and benumbing our
limbs. We boast of becoming liberal-minded and broad. We should not
forget, however, that broad streams are shallow, and that narrow ones
are deep. Their currents are apt to be swift enough to cut up the mud
and wash out the riff-raff from the channel, leaving a smooth, solid
rock bed. God’s Word may lead us into deep water, but it will never
leave us without a solid foundation. There is such a thing as being
broader than wise, and wiser than good.” For more than an hour his
audience of three thousand persons is under his magic power. At times
they are breathless. The Doctor plays upon the fibres of men’s hearts
like a skillful musician upon the strings of his harp. He strikes
any chord—every chord—he pleases. The audience can neither resist
laughter nor suppress tears. Every heart is pierced by the orator’s
fiery glance, and thrilled by his matchless eloquence. As Goethe said
of Herder, “He preaches like a God.”
The enthusiasm of the meeting reaches its zenith Wednesday
afternoon, when the Right Hon. John Bright delivers an address on
“Sunday-schools.” The excitement is simply intense. One round of
applause follows another until the very walls of the building are made
to ring with glad huzzas. Then those who can not gain entrance to the
immense hall take up the cry, and send it ringing through the streets
of the city. The excitement really becomes painful. Mr. Bright is quite
old and feeble—his head is white as cotton, still he is a perfect
master of assemblies. As an orator, he is much after the style of the
late Brooklyn divine.
One touching incident must be related. Mr. Bright stands before the
audience motionless, until silence is restored. He then calls Mr.
Aldis to him. As the two venerable men stand side by side facing the
audience, with their hands on each other’s shoulders, Mr. Bright
relates the following incident: “I first met Mr. Aldis fifty-four years
ago. We were then just entering upon the duties of life. On the day of
our meeting, each of us delivered an address to a large assembly. Mr.
Aldis was my senior. He spoke first, and I second. After the speaking
was over, he took me to one side. He said that he saw in me powers that
should be developed. He told me how to develop those powers. In a word,
he lectured me on public speaking. This, ladies and gentlemen, was my
first and last lesson in elocution.” Then, turning to his old teacher,
he continued: “Mr. Aldis, if I have accomplished anything in life, and
especially as a public speaker, it is due, at least in part, to your
kindly counsels. We met first fifty-four years ago; this is our second
meeting; our third will be in Heaven.”
The meeting has just closed. It was an unequivocal success. The
arrangements were simply perfect. No weak plank was put in the
platform. Every speaker was true and tried, and everything passed
off with an eclat that is pleasing to contemplate. A daily paper, in
speaking of the meeting, says: “The Baptists were seen at their best,
and they are justly proud that it was a very good best.”
These English Baptists have been exceedingly kind and courteous to me.
I was entertained by Hon. John S. Hudson, Mayor of the city. It seemed
that Mr. Hudson and family could not do enough for their American
guest. Their kindness will never be forgotten.