Mr. World and Miss Church-Member: A Twentieth Century AllegoryHarris, W. S. (William Shuler)
Religion
Mr. World and Miss Church-Member: A Twentieth Century Allegory
Harris, W. S. (William Shuler)
Christian fiction
A Satanic smile covered the features of Blackana as he assured me that
the earth does know of these things, and has known of them for ages,
but is too well pleased with them to offer serious opposition.
In disgust I turned from Blackana and saw that Mr. World and Miss
Church-Member had reached the suburbs of the Wizard City where they
read this unexpected notice over a large brazen gate:
NONE ADMITTED EXCEPT THEY TO WHOM THE PORTER OPENETH.
“Ah! all our toil may be in vain,” sighed Miss Church-Member.
They stood for a brief time in a quandary, discussing how one may know
whether or not the Porter will open the gate. Finally the stalwart
Porter approached them and spoke: “With what motive and for what purpose
would ye enter?”
Mr. World, with native tact, was ready with an answer: “I am in full
sympathy with the work done in this city and have with me my friend
who is still a member of a church standing along the King’s Highway.”
The Porter advanced with graceful bearing and bowed to Miss
Church-Member. “Perchance,” said he, “you have come to receive some
new ideas for the benefit of the church?”
“You have surmised it,” she blushingly replied. “The church to which
I belong is sadly behind the age in its methods of work. I am hoping
that the inventive genius of this city can give me some features new
and attractive, that I may, in my missionary work, help to introduce
them into antiquated churches.”
“Yours is a worthy mission,” politely said the Porter, “and I herewith
hand you a card which will admit both of you into the department of
the city, number seven hundred and seventy-seven.”
Instantly the gate flew wide open, and the happy couple passed through
joyfully. They walked by the many fairy-like buildings, closing their
eyes to all the special scenes so that they might give their first
attention to the department indicated by the Porter.
With little difficulty they found the place desired, and handed the
card to a curator who conducted them to the general manager.
“I infer, by this card,” said the manager, “that you are hoping to
find some new schemes to facilitate the work and service of the church.”
“That is our aim,” answered Miss Church-Member.
“I am glad that you are so ambitious to keep apace with the times. In
this marvelous age of mechanism all things are done by devices and
machinery, and the church that would keep step with the spirit of
progress must also be run by mechanism. The services of such a
congregation should be controlled by a rigid methodical law, so that
everything will move like clock-work. The church of to-day, in its
movement towards form and ceremony, is approaching the highest laws
of universal harmony. This hopeful tendency is most helpful to the
soul of man and most pleasing to God.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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