Luke xxii. 33.-Lord, with thee I am ready to go both to prison and to death.

Heb. ii. 9.-That by the grace of God He should taste death for every man.

Rev. iv. 1.-Come up hither, and I will show thee the things which must come to pass hereafter.

MISCELLANY.

ABOUT FUNERAL ADDRESSES.

BY PASTOR RUDOLPH MULLER.

[Translated from the German by Rev. G. F. Behringer.]

To preach in Christ's name means to bear witness to Christ; means to offer to the congregation a living testimony from the converted heart. Thus the funeral address must be a testimony of salvation in Christ; it will be, first of all, a witness of the faith, and, in the faith of Jesus, a testimony of our hope through Him. Without Jesus no salvation, either in life, or in death, or in eternity; no salvation for the departed, none for those remaining. And when the newly-made grave testifies of the transitory character of all things; when sorrow and mourning surround the preacher; when the burden of grief rests like a heavy weight upon the hearts; when human comfort is dumb, or does not avail-at that time how elevating is it to hear the preacher of the Gospel speak with joy upon his lips, proclaiming the grace of God in Jesus Christ, illuminating the gloom of the grave, lighting up also the gloom of sorrow through the proclamation of the Lord, who is the resurrection and the life! This is the height up to which every funeral address must lead.

Thus the funeral sermon is essentially a testimony for Christ, and a confession of the hope in Christ that is within us; and this confession at the grave exerts a mighty influence upon the heart not yet completely hardened. Nowhere else so striking as here, where even the careless one cannot resist serious thoughts, does the opportunity present itself to hold the hearts, and direct them to the "one thing needful." Many a one has, perhaps purposely, gone out of the way of the Word of God; but here he must hear it, either for weal or woe. Many a heart has grown hard under the cares and pleasures of life, but pain is a sharper plough which loosens the earth. At this time he is in a receptive condition; instinctively he longs for a word of life that may comfort him. Such an opportunity must be utilized. Let us be mindful of our sacred obligation to scatter divine seed. Let us be painfully conscientious in funeral sermons: we shall be called upon to give an account of every idle word spoken. To this class belongs the useless word that carries with it no power of life.

The difficulty of combining personal matters with the treatment of the text is but an apparent one. For the text should be chosen especially in view of the individuality of the deceased. Philip David Burk correctly says: "The personal allusions are not to be saved unto the end of the discourse, but in the very beginning the impression is to be made that these personal matters were in the mind of the speaker during his preparation for and in his meditation upon the address." Emphasizing the personal (which was developed out of the heathen laudatio") is the most original element of the funeral address. We find this, by way of illustration, as thoroughly violating all churchly dignity in the case of the address of Ephraim the Syrian upon Basilius the Great. If a distinguished person is to be buried, possibly here or there may be found some one disposed to lavish his praises extravagantly in an uncalled-for and offensive manner, with a view of pleasing the surviving relatives. Even a common peasant pride, based upon the money bags, demands at times such praise. Let the servant of the Church not belittle himself to found the fame of the deceased upon externals, or to adorn the life-picture of the departed with virtues that he never possessed. But, of course, that is to be praised that is worthy of praise-what we know of him by our own observation and experience, or whatever may be known in the common experience of the friends and acquaintances of the deceased. Yet in doing this we should not praise the dead in and for himself, but for the grace of God which glorified itself in him, for "through grace I am that I am;" we should not declare him as saved because of his works, but we may hope and pray for this salvation in Christ's mercy and as a manifestation of grace, provided that the confession may also be reported of him: “The highest praise at my grave shall be that I have loved Thee, Lord!''

If we did not personally know the deceased, and if, after diligent inquiry, we cannot obtain any reliable information, then the greatest caution is to be exercised in praise as well as in blame. The want of this caution has given many an offence. Even if the clergyman in question is innocent in a certain sense of doing any injustice, the truth is expected of him under all circumstances. And it is very distressing when he with pathos proclaims as truth and reality what is the very opposite, and presents the same for our example; or when he reproves the deceased when many grateful mourners honestly and sincerely lament his loss. This estranges the heart and impairs authority. Furthermore, attention is to be paid to this point: only such personal matters are to be taken up and considered as are of any value to Christian consideration, only such as can be regarded from an evangelical point of view. Matters of little con. sequence, at any rate such as are of little importance in the sight of God, are not to be put into a funeral address. In this respect the preacher must regard his word as too high and holy to refer to trifles at the grave, where the breath of eternity touches us. It would be sad indeed if he had nothing important to say.

In regard to the use of personal matters, the text will afford us the

right measure to be applied. Let us keep this steadily in view; it will preserve us against errors and unnecessary latitude, and will teach us to emphasize only those points the mention of which will not flatter the individual, but will be of saving influence to all. It is pleasing if we can bestow praise and in this way impress the image of the departed indelibly upon the memory of the survivors (e.g. in the case of a father or mother). Then the grave exerts an influence upon the mourners, and in the case of many an erring one has proven to be in later years an awakening voice. But how shall we proceed if, on the other hand, the life-picture of the deceased present dark spots? It would be wanting in tact and impru dent did we appear at the grave with the lightning and thunder of Mount Sinai. We are servants of Christ who, with all earnestness, carry not only the rod " WOE," but also the rod " EASY," that is, peace. "This one receives sinners." This is His highest praise. We should not only wound, we should also heal; and remember that we preachers are not infallible. How seest thou the mote in thy brother's eye, and regardest not the beam that is in thine own eye?" This passage also will apply to the servant of the Word: "Judge not, that ye be not judged." There is no man but has some good sides to his character; let us dwell upon these : the bad sides are known to the people without our telling them. And why mention such things when the deceased is now standing before his judge, perhaps has become reconciled to God through sorrow and repentance? But, if nothing good whatever can be said of the deceased, then it would be best to make the address a general one-that is, to speak of the destroying influences of sin, the necessity of conversion, etc. The people understand right well how to read between the lines. What must be said can be said without offending any one: there is but tact needed.

44

Let us hold fast to this: the funeral address shall be a testimony of love. The sinner is rather the object of pity than of condemnation. Sin is condemned by the Scripture under any and every circumstance. But the sinner remains the object of our love. If we could know all the secret ways by which one has gone to destruction, how many things should we find have co-operated to bring this about, and which would essentially modify our judgment! To paint as light that which is dark, we dare not do. When one has died unconverted, when he has persevered unto hardness in his vice, this dare not be ignored, even for the sake of those who have come out to hear. It would mark the preacher with the brand of cowardice. The more boldly he can swing the sword of the Spirit, the better will it be. Yet love must guide the hand, that love which bewails, which does not condemn without mercy. And the sword must not be drawn against the deceased brother, but against his vice, especially if this be prevalent in others among the congregation. Thus the object of the address will be gained, and truth will be honored without causing offence or arousing bitterness of feeling. The funeral address should not cast a shadow upon the deceased, but light from a higher world upon the life of the living.

The funeral address becomes a very difficult matter when the deceased was a modern heathen, whose burial is nevertheless demanded of the Church. The Roman Catholic Church simply ignores him—that is, in case he ignores the Church up to the last moment. But the Evangelical Church must be tolerant. Up to the present time, whoever pays church dues can demand a church burial. Such people, since they led a “civil” life, should receive a civil burial-thus thinks the hot-head. And yet, if either the departed or his relatives have asked for a religious interment, does not this involve the confession, even if external reasons seem to contradict, that the Church is a power, and that only a churchly burial hallows the ceremony at the grave? And even if the Church have no power or influence over the dead, have not the living been intrusted to her care for her to seek them, and, if possible, to save them, and to give them to know and to experience what of reality there is in the neglected salvation by faith?

The preacher must here honor the truth, and yet confess with regret that the eyes of the deceased were holden to the treasures of the Church. Perhaps God's all-seeing eye may have discerned elements of faith upon the background of the heart; perhaps the deceased in his secret hours may have experienced an ardent desire for that God whom he outwardly denied; perhaps God's mercy had begun its work of repentance within him in a quiet but particular way, and that He will lead him up above to a fuller knowledge of salvation. At any rate, we dare not presume to prescribe bounds to God's mercy, nor to close heaven against any one, small as may be our hope that God will know one who despises Him here. "Yet not as man regardeth," etc.

66

The funeral sermon ought to be, furthermore, a testimony of love to the survivors. If the deceased did not occupy a prominent position in life, his special relation to his relatives affords us sufficient material. And that we are addressing mourners will also determine the tone of our remarks. We ought to be mindful of these things in determining our thoughts. Yet there are rocks even here. Yes, it was a beautiful address; not one eye that was not bathed in tears." Such laudation seems to many a one to be the principal thing. He seems fairly to exhaust himself " "to drum upon the hearts" of the people, to open the floodgates of tears, to inflict deep wounds that bleed right well. With hard-boned natures and thick-skinned hearts this may pass. But if there be nervously constituted persons present, then fainting fits are unavoidable, with accompanying disorders, and upon the educated such a course produces the opposite effect from that desired. "Weep with the weeping ones." This is the advantage which the older minister has over the younger one, that his long experience indicates to him the right tone and temper of mind which will re-echo in the wounded hearts and lead them to feel involuntarily the minister knows just how I feel. If the minister has himself stood at the grave of father or mother, or of wife or child, how differently will he speak

: