| Show preaching this way may be a land of liberty political and religious bat wore there are some rome people who think bink that the liberties of some gome classes are very much curtailed ty oy lobal regulations in ia various or of number are the rev henry varley ine gas millionaire english evangelist and the forty oakland ministers mini atara who tried to preach in ine streets roots of the california lown on sunday dunday night bereut preaching is allowed in thy the cities and nearly all be ahe towns of great britain it in IB urged that thin in the only means that many poor people in crowded cities nave have of receiving religious in tiou for there la in oo no PI place in churches for those best beat clothing to la little better than rage hence benoe assemblages in the abe streets and otheir public places where traffic is in not impeded thereby are permuted permitted and even given police protection but it Is ia not so BO in oakland mr varley started out tor for a 11 days day street preaching campaigns campaign in ghion he proposed to carry religious exhortations to every soul ot of the poor the and the arri errion a g of oak oaklan ian i IA a thousands w who b 0 would listen when the preachers came to thew them but who would nut not enter he door of a church building to seek religious instruction the appearance of the ministers in their open pulpite pulpits created a decided sensation and wan attracting much attention when abe whole thing was put a stop atop to by the be mayor informing the minie ministre Wre that toey they were violating the he law aej would be arreatta if they did not sue BUS pend operations at sil 0 co ce ho 80 now the poor and the inner in oakland are not privileged to have gospel preached to them even from a sectarian ministers minister ts standpoint as it would woula be unlawful to address an audience la 10 the treet street without permission of the mayor who wh will not nor consent what is treely freely granted to the many thousands of darkest england En glands is population in metropolitan poli tain london is denied the inhabitants of an enlightened municipality like oakland and some other ameri can cad cities that might be named the practice of street preaching sometimes may become a nuisance and in wat that respect may need regula lion clon but where it does dees not occasion the obstruction of a public highway or cause interference with the rights of people either individually or col electively to forbid it seems un in in rin gement of at least the me spirit ot of the constitutional guarantees guarantee of free dom of speech and the right of the people peaceably to assemble certainly when the preaching that may be indulged in is not of a nature to promote disorder diso ider and crime but tends tenda to elevate morals to lead to order and amid to encourage those ennobling gentl ments menta that strengthen and uphold good government it is not the me genius of republican institutions to prohibit it IL were preaching to take the direction ot of lawlessness either in treat street or building it ais suppression would be legitimate the agency of street preaching has been a powerful means of effecting reforms in many countries and different ager get by it the laoo has been aroused to action for the overthrow of correction of public abuses 8 and nd tor for the performing of an important part in the evolution from the dark is gee ages to the present state of popular freedom and enlightenment it la is a method of reaching people who tail fall to attend the usual places of assembly but whose yearning for something more than aban they experience makes make them eager to accept an advance or reform movement when it is brought to them for this cause canso if no other it would do da good policy for government to encourage that means of disseminating views which lead to its own stability important as has been the use of popular or street meetings in the evolution of political life it has been still greater in the religious field it Is was wa a largely by this means that the plas of christianity whose preachers were cast out of the synagogues and the churches reached the masses wasse of the people and set to in motion the resistless tide cioe which carried over a grent grems portion of the globe firm convictions conviction regarding a crucified and risen redeemer of mankind in this dispensation it also has been an important avenue through which the goabel message has baa been brought to so thousand housander hou sande and its usefulness in this regard use aas not passed away either at home or in foreign lands it is a means of popular oteous sion and education among the tb common people the masses of the poor and the be multitudes of those who without it might have remained in deeper ignorance hence it to is a privilege which under proper regulation for its peaceful exercise should be preserved to the people for religious political or other purposes of common interest to toman iman klud |
