To interfere with souls in their com-
munion with God seemed impossible; to let them
continue to utter personal attacks in church, under
cover of prayer, was equally impossible. Any course I
could follow seemed to lead away from my new parish,
yet both duty and pride made prompt action neces-
sary. By the time we gathered for the third prayer-
meeting I had decided what to do, and before the
services began I rose and addressed my erring chil-
dren. I explained that the character of the prayers
at our recent meetings was making us the laughing-
stock of the community, that unbelievers were
ridiculing our religion, and that the discipline of
the church was being wrecked; and I ended with
these words, each of which I had carefully weighed:
``Now one of two things must happen. Either
you will stop this kind of praying, or you will re-
main away from our meetings. We will hold prayer-
meetings on another night, and I shall refuse ad-
mission to any among you who bring personal criti-
cisms into your public prayers.''
As I had expected it to do, the announcement
created an immediate uproar. Both factions sprang
to their feet, trying to talk at once. The storm
raged until I dismissed the congregation, telling the
members that their conduct was an insult to the
Lord, and that I would not listen to either their
protests or their prayers. They went unwillingly,
but they went; and the excitement the next day
raised the sick from their beds to talk of it, and
swept the length and breadth of Cape Cod.
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