USA > New York > New York City > A history of the Brick Presbyterian Church in the city of New York > Part 23
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In the course of the succeeding debates and con- ferences, Dr. Spring's voice was still heard. He urged that any delay in the consummation would be "flying in the face of the prayers of God's people." "If you postpone this union another year," said he,
* "The Presbyterian Reunion." N. Y., 1870., p. 334.
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"I shall probably not see it, but shall die a member of a divided Church." * As is well known, his fears, so feelingly expressed, were not to be realized, and meantime, on Friday, May 28th, at the joint Com- munion Service in which the members of the two Assemblies shared, he, with the two moderators, officiated at the table. "It was," says the historian, "as if Moses or Elias had come down to talk on that Transfiguration Mount, of the decease accomplished at Jerusalem." t
After sharing in this historic event Dr. Spring might well feel that his work was accomplished. "The closing years of his life," wrote Dr. Murray, "were marked by what he himself used to call 'a gentle decay.' It was, indeed, very gentle. His fac- ulties were clear, his interest in things about him keen, his enjoyment of life healthy and true, almost to the very close."
Of the days just before the end there is but a single incident that need be here repeated. We are told that during those last days he was never tired of hearing what he called the bairns' hymns, and it was a striking illustration, says Dr. Murray, of how the mightiest disciple must enter the kingdom of God only as a little child, to hear the old man, lying like an aged patriarch in the midst of his household, re- peat in broken accents the children's prayer, "Now I lay me down to sleep," adding at the end, as though the words had carried him back to his childhood days, "and make me a good boy, for Christ's sake. Amen." On the 18th of August, 1873, he died. He
* "The Presbyterian Reunion," p. 349.
t Ibid., p. 360.
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had been the pastor of the Brick Church for sixty- three years. *
Mr. Murray, who came to take up the work of the church as Dr. Spring was laying it down, was in the prime of life, and was fitted in an exceptional degree for the office upon which he now entered. ; He had graduated with honors from Brown University in 1850, and had at that time already become known for his Christian character and his scholarly taste and attainments. He had especially devoted him- self to the study of English literature and throughout his whole later life he was distinguished for "the true literary spirit" with which he was imbued.
The next period of his life, spent at Andover in his theological preparation, is admirably described by one of his classmates, Charles Tiffany, afterward Archdeacon of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. "Mr. Murray at Andover," wrote Dr. Tiffany, "showed as a student just the same qualities which made him efficient and beloved in his later career. He was faithful in his work and commanded respect
* Although he received several calls to other spheres of work, he never seriously contemplated any change. During his early ministry he was offered the presidency of both Dartmouth and Hamilton colleges, and later he was sought as teacher of Sacred Rhetoric in Princeton Theological Seminary. Even in 1865, eight years before his death, there remained alive but four persons who had been members of the church at the time of his call. He had, in one instance, baptized the great-great-grandchild of one of those early parishioners. New York's population during his pastorate had increased from something under a hundred thousand to more than a million. So far back in our national history did his memory reach that he could say, "I well remember the day when Washington died." "Life and Times," Vol. II, pp. 212, 282 f.
t He was born November 27th, 1827. On his father's side his ancestors were Presbyterians and Episcopalians, and partly of Scotch stock (the Murrays), partly of English, settled in Ireland, (the Syngs). On his mother's side his blood was wholly English and Puritan.
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as a scholar; and his literary felicity, even at that early period of his life, made a marked impression on all who heard him in his addresses in the chapel and on other semi-public occasions. Every one proph- esied for him a future of eminence and distinguished usefulness. Those who were privileged, as I was, to be of the number of his intimate friends felt the spell of his charming and genial personality, and loved him as much as they respected and admired him. His religious character was too deep to be ostenta- tious, but it was manifest in his profound earnestness and in a high tone of thought and simplicity of ex- pression which marked his intercourse with others. He was so genuinely human and so unconsciously true and spiritual that one knew he would reach men and elevate them by merely being what he was. . . His humor added a glow to his more solid qualities, and his refinement of nature gave him the distinction and influence so commanding in a genuine gentle- man. He belonged to the very elect both by nature and by grace." * Such, even in his seminary days, was he who, after two Massachusetts pastorates, t was called to the Brick Church in 1864. His ten- year pastorate in New York will be described in this chapter and the next.
It was characteristic of the man and a sign of the beginning of what may be called the modern period of the history of the Brick Church, that Mr. Murray early gave his attention to the improvement of the
* From a letter quoted in "James O. Murray: a Memorial Sermon." By John DeWitt, Princeton, 1899, pp. 23 f.
t In South Danvers, near Salem (1854-1861), and in Cambridgeport (1861-1864), where many students of the University were drawn to his services.
JAMES O. MURRAY
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music of the church services. Already, as we have seen, the changed spirit of the times had caused the introduction of the pipe organ, but the singing was still led by the chorister, and, with the removal from the old site, even the volunteer choir had evidently been discontinued. No doubt the congregation were ready to welcome a change in these conditions, but there had been lacking some one in authority who was in sympathy with the more modern taste, and willing to exert himself in an endeavor to satisfy it. Mr. Murray was both able and ready to undertake this work.
He had not long been in the church when he was asked to become chairman of the session's music committee, and the attempt to improve the quality of the music, evidenced by a decided increase in the chorister's salary at this time, was no doubt the im- mediate result of his influence .*
These changes, however, were merely preliminary to another of much more importance. In April, 1866, the committee on music reported to the session that upon inquiry a very general desire had been found among the congregation for "a change in the present method of conducting the singing," by sub- stituting for the precentor or chorister "a choir of at least four voices." It was not intended, they said, that "congregational singing should be superseded by the performances of a quartette, but only that the choir should lead the congregation in the service of song in the house of the Lord."
* It now became a part of the chorister's duty to sing at the meeting on Tuesday evenings. In 1872 a small pipe organ was erected in the lecture room.
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"In the judgment of some of our best professional musicians," the report continues, "the only method of maintaining congregational singing successfully is by putting it under the guidance and assistance of a choir of voices, where all the parts are represented; and the musical education of many among us, es- pecially the young, as also the musical tastes of the community, are such that the change suggested is thought to be needful in order to make them inter- ested worshippers in this most delightful part of our worship of God. In the case of persons seeking a new place of worship, an attractive form of church music is often a controlling element in their choice." The committee were of the opinion that any addi- tional expense, entailed by the proposed change, would without difficulty be met by means of private subscription.
The proposal involved, as it happened, something more than the hiring of a quartette. No proper place had been provided in the new church for a choir, even of four voices, and it was at first thought that the best way of dealing with this difficulty would be to open an entirely new gallery under the tower at the east end of the church. But Mr. Thomas, the archi- tect, recommended a less costly change, by which the gallery behind the pulpit might still be utilized. Under his supervision the columns, whose arrange- ment had interfered with that gallery's use, were now moved to their present positions, providing a clear space of ten feet in the centre .* Here it was designed that the quartette should stand, while the organ, considerably enlarged, ¿ was moved back as
* See p. 287, note. t It was reconstructed by Mr. William J. Stewart.
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far as was necessary, a certain portion of the room in the rear being appropriated for this purpose. * When these structural changes had been made, a quartette ; was engaged and a new era in the history of worship in the Brick Church was begun. The trustees had dealt with the matter in a generous spirit and provided out of the church treasury the additional sum which the change involved. The music, which had been costing $1,400, now called for $2,500.
The next musical problem to which Dr. Murray gave his attention was the providing of a suitable hymn-book. Already the volume entitled "Songs for the Sanctuary" had been purchased, in 1866, for use at the weekly meetings, but to find a satisfactory book for the use of the Sunday services was a matter much more difficult, and in November, 1867, the session decided to undertake the preparation of a hymn-book of their own, which should include a se- lection "as well from the psalms and hymns of Watts as from all other published hymns." This task was entrusted to Mr. William S. Gilman, Mr. Daniel Lord, and Dr. Murray.§
The report of this committee, at the time when the
* A wall was built running west from the north end of the organ loft and cutting off entirely the whole southern end of the room in the rear, then used for the Sunday-school. It was necessary, in consequence, that the Sunday-school be moved to the third story, where it was held for a number of years.
t This first quartette was composed as follows: Miss Kellogg, soprano; Miss Gordon, alto; Mr. Emerson, bass; Mr. Millard, tenor.
* He received his Doctor's degree in 1867.
§ Mr. Lord, whose "discriminating taste and excellent judgment" were highly prized, died before the book was complete. Dr. Spring made the selection of metrical versions of the Psalms.
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completed manuscript was submitted to the session, may be regarded as a part, not only of the history of the Brick Church, but of the history of hymnology in the Church at large. For two years, the report tells us, the committee had devoted itself to the work of making a select list of hymns from American and English publications, with a view to securing "the best hymns upon the various topics." During this time weekly meetings had been held, at which the hymns were discussed one by one, while the consid- erable literature on the subject, "on which," they say, "more has probably been printed during the past ten years than for a generation preceding," was thoroughly canvassed.
The aim pursued had been to select hymns "which show forth the praises of God and the glories of his attributes in the glowing language of the emotions," such hymns as "appeared best to express Scripture truths regarding man's lost estate and the means of his recovery through Christ," and to be most "ex- pressive of the warmest love and nearness to God. . . the most fervent zeal, and the most touching and com- forting religious experience."
In pursuing this purpose the committee had "cast aside a large mass of mediocre hymns," * and had chosen in their place "those which in Watts, Steele, Wesley, Doddridge, Toplady and some more modern writers prove themselves the offspring of deep re- ligious convictions based upon a sound and true
* They add, however: "Your committee has not hesitated to retain some hymns apparently subject to criticism by a cultivated taste, but which, by general consent of Christians, appear to be of such merit as to defy ordinary rules of criticism. Among such we regard Newton's "Tis a point I long to know,' and ' I asked the Lord that I might grow in grace.'"
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theology." On the other hand, they had added a large number of valuable hymns which were not to be found in the General Assembly's book * nor in "Watts and Select," ; the book which the church was at that time using. The result was a collection of six hundred and sixteen psalms and hymns, of such a character that the committee believed no other recent compilation for congregational use was "more rigidly confined to the productions of the great hymn writers," or more free from the second-rate material by which in recent years the hymnology of the church had been debased.
The book was rendered still more valuable by the inclusion in it of certain of the ancient hymns of the Church, such as the "Gloria in Excelsis" and the "Te Deum," ¿ also a selection of other chants, es- pecially from the Psalms, and a collection of sacred
* "As a sample we name the following, namely: by Toplady, 'When lan- guor and disease invade'; by Charles Wesley, 'Soldiers of Christ, arise'; by Needham, 'Rise, O my soul, pursue the path'; by Cowper, 'The bil- lows swell, the winds are high'; by Montgomery, 'Prayer is the soul's sin- cere desire.'"' Committee's report.
t "As a sample we name the following, namely: by Doddridge, 'How gentle God's commands'; by the same, 'My gracious Lord, I own thy right'; by Tate and Brady, 'As pants the hart for cooling streams'; by Doddridge, 'Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve'; by Cowper, 'Jesus, where'er thy people meet'; by Wesley, 'Come, O thou Traveller un- known'; by Gerhardt, 'O Sacred Head, now wounded'; by Charlotte Elliot, 'Just as I am, without one plea'; by Mrs. Adams, 'Nearer, my God, to thee'; by Henry Francis Lyte, 'Abide with me, fast falls the eventide'; by an unknown author, 'Ye Christian heralds, go proclaim.'" Commit- tee's report.
# The committee quote with approval the opinion of Dr. Hamilton "that in churches where the Apostles' or Nicene Creed is not audibly re- peated by the congregation, great advantage is derived from confessing with the mouth the doctrine of our holy faith in song, especially in this chant [the Te Deum] which was praised by Luther as a good symbol not less than a perfect hymn."
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lyrics,* which, although from their nature unfitted for congregational singing, "are exceedingly profitable in private devotions and are calculated greatly to benefit young persons in the family, cultivating in them a taste for the very best order of religious verse."
In November, 1869, the book was published under the title, "The Sacrifice of Praise." It was at once introduced into the church, and with its aid the regular committee on music, with Dr. Murray still at the head, took up their work again with renewed interest, and especially directed their attention to the devel- opment of the congregational singing to the fullest possible extent. t
In raising additional subscriptions for the music, the committee proved themselves equally zealous, and for several years, they thus provided about $1,400, for by this time the annual cost of the music had come to be nearly $4,000.
The singing was by no means the only element of public worship that engaged the attention of the ses- sion at this time. Indeed, in 1870, a committee was appointed to consider whether in general there were any changes that ought to be introduced into the manner of conducting the services in the Brick Church. We do not know what proposals they may have made, except that at the suggestion of their chairman the gown, which had been worn
* "Exquisite gems such as Wesley's 'Wrestling Jacob,' and Montgom- ery's 'Poor wayfaring man of grief,' and Keble's celebrated hymn on com- plete resignation to God." Committee's report.
t We learn that besides the congregational singing of psalms and hymns there was now an "opening piece," sung presumably by the choir alone,
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by the minister in Dr. Rodgers' day, but had been disused during Dr. Spring's pastorate, was now re- sumed. We may, perhaps, infer from this that their recommendations were in the direction of an in- creased orderliness and dignity in the worship of the church. It should be added that the manner of cele- brating the Lord's Supper * was, during Dr. Mur- ray's pastorate, given careful consideration.t
It was during this period, moreover, that certain changes were made in the number of the services and meetings and in the time at which they were held, by which some of the customs, still prevailing at the present day, were originated. Thus the change of the hour of Sunday morning service to eleven o'clock was first broached in 1873, "for the accommodation of families with children, Sunday-school teachers and scholars, persons living at a distance from the church, and the many others whose convenience would be promoted by the change." Earlier than this a more radical departure from established custom had been introduced: in 1866, the weekly lecture, which was at that time held on Tuesday evening, was tem- porarily discontinued, "with a view to increasing the interest and attendance at the weekly prayer and conference meeting on Friday evening." ¿ A year later the holding of but a single meeting between Sundays was still further established as the accepted custom-it consisted of "a brief lecture connected
* After 1865, this Sacrament was administered five instead of four times yearly.
t See Appendix V, p. 543. For order of Baptismal service at this time see Appendix U, p. 542.
#'Although the nights had been changed, these were, it will be ob- served, the same two week-day services as were held in Dr. Rodgers' time.
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with a prayer-meeting, to continue for one hour and a quarter," *- and by 1869, when the meeting was held, as at present, on Wednesday evening, it was referred to as "the weekly church meeting," as though a second week-day service were not so much as thought of.
Among the changes which during Dr. Murray's pastorate marked the beginning of the present era, one of the most important concerned the activities then commenced among the women of the congrega- tion. In Christian work of every sort the part played to-day by the women of our churches is so important that we find it difficult to conceive what the condi- tions would be, were they to become inactive. Yet it must be remembered that this great importance of women's work is a very modern development. When Dr. Murray came to the Brick Church the women had only begun to discover their powers, but before his departure their work had assumed definite shape and had already acquired a place of unquestionable prominence and practical value in the church's pro- gramme.
Long before this time women had, of course, been active in Sunday-school work and their benevolent impulses had no doubt found abundant expression in personal charities, and to some extent in money- raising auxiliaries of the prominent missionary and benevolent organizations of the church at large, t
* It was held on Tuesdays that year.
" A "Female Auxiliary Tract Association of the Brick Church," for example, had been in existence before the middle of the century. The account book of the treasurer of this organization for the years 1837 to 1861, is preserved in the church archives. Its subscription lists constitute an interesting roll of the givers and workers among the Brick Church women for that period.
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but for women alone the only distinctive organized work in the Brick Church had been a struggling little "Dorcas Society," concerning which but few facts have come down to us. We do not even know when it was founded. Its chief purpose, as its name im- plies, was to provide garments for the poor; but occa- sionally, we are told, it also superintended the sending of a home missionary box. Aside from these scanty facts, the only thing we know about the Dorcas So- ciety is connected with the burning of Dr. Hoge's house one night in February, 1860.
It seems that on that occasion the entire clothing of Dr. Hoge's family was either burnt, or spoiled by the water used in extinguishing the fire, so that the chil- dren were forced to stay in bed till clothes could be borrowed for them from the neighbors. But the Dorcas Society came to the rescue. The members were promptly called together and worked to such good purpose that by Sunday the minister's family had all been refitted and could appear in church with new clothes of their own. *
In January, 1869, some of those who had been active in this society decided that, by adopting a somewhat different plan of work, they could accom- plish a great deal more good. If, instead of making with their own hands the garments to be given away in charity, they employed for that purpose poor women who needed work and especially work that could be done at home, it was evident that the value of the benevolence would be doubled. This plan was already in use in a society in the Marble Collegiate
* These facts are taken from a letter written by Miss Sophia Ely in 1902.
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Church on Twenty-ninth Street, and the women of the Brick Church now adopted it, forming for that purpose what has ever since been known as the Em- ployment Society .* For some time the old Dorcas Society continued its work in cooperation with the newer organization. The latest mention of it was in April, 1871.
The work of the Employment Society, which was carefully systematized, is worthy of being described in some detail. The first necessity was to secure capital for running the business-for "business" is the proper word to use: the society was really en- gaged in a small way in the manufacture and sale of clothing. The needed capital was provided by an- nual subscriptions from the members, by donations, and, after the work had been started, by the proceeds of the sales.
A certain portion of the money was then expended for materials, and the records show that the buying committee were constantly on the alert to lay in their supply when prices were most favorable. The rest of the money was set aside for the payment of the women employed to do the sewing.
Meantime the garments must be cut out, and for this purpose the cutting committee met in the
* The following were the members whose names appear in the records of the first year: Mrs. Barbour, Beebe, Blakeman, Bonnett, Brown, Buchan, Buchanan, Burr, Church, Clark, Comstock, Corning, Downer, Dunning, Gilman, Holbrook, Holden, Lathrop, Morgan, Murray, Odell, Paton, Shedd, Stafford, Talmage, Tucker, Watson, White; Misses Bon- nett, Donaldson, Houghton, Lord, Parish, Phelps, Smith, Vernon, Vose. To Mrs. W. G. T. Shedd, who was first directress for several years from the time of the society's organization, much of the success of the society was due. The minutes of the board of managers from the beginning till the present time have been carefully preserved.
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church rooms on Friday mornings, while many of the members continued this work at home between the meetings. Frequently from three to four hundred garments would be cut in a single month.
The employment of women to do the sewing was managed by a system of "permits." Each annual subscriber had the privilege of sending, in the course of a season, a certain number of applicants. If the subscriber's recommendation and her guarantee of the return of the materials were satisfactory, a permit was issued which entitled the applicant to receive work from the distributing committee. When fin- ished, the work was brought back and submitted for inspection. Here was encountered one of the chief difficulties: the women were often found to be far from skilful with their needles. Various expedi- ents for solving the problem thus created were pro- posed from time to time, such as, the absolute refusal of work to persons not competent; the re- quirement that work be done over when not satis- factory; the imposing of some sort of penalty upon the sewer or upon the subscriber who had recom- mended her; or the offering of some sort of reward, especially the promise of double the amount of work, to those whose work was well done. But the happiest expedient attempted was one which responded to the need by introducing, in addition to the society's des- ignated work of "employment," some features prop- erly belonging to a sewing-school.
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