(TO TIM EDITOR OF TRH SPROTATOR:1
SIR,—Am I to understand that your correspondent, "R. S. D.," does not think that a churchyard would be desecrated by the
ministrations of a man who availed himself of the occasion of a funeral to preach "no God," "no life beyond the grave ? ' He says, "You can protect yourself from being hurt by it by
simply staying away." Yes, but how about protecting others from being hurt? In a country village, the women and children of the village are very apt to congregate and cluster round the grave. They may be hurt by it.
Perhaps he will say that a godless discourse might as well be delivered in one place as another, and as well in the churchyard as anywhere else. Well, then, I want to know whether he will go on to say that it might as well be delivered from the pulpit or from the altar as in the churchyard. I imagine he will say "No" to that, but then I ask, why is the Church more sacred than the churchyard? They have both been consecrated, if that is worth anything. But I think that the true consecration of any place is the consecration it receives in the minds of those who visit it, by the solemn religious thoughts it suggests. To many parishioners, and to me amongst the number, the parish churchyard is the most sacred spot on the earth, from the associations connected with it. I want to know on what possible ground your corre- spondent thinks—if I am to understand that he does think it—that a Godless service, trampling on the tenderest and finest instincts of mankind, would be less objectionable in the churchyard than in the church.
You know that on the Dissenters' Burials question my sympa- thies are more with Dissenters than with Churchmen. I hate be- yond measure the invidious distinction which would close the doors of the church to Dissenting mourners, while it opened them to Church people.
In my opinion, the only way to abolish this invidious distinc- tion, and at the same time to protect our churches and church- yards from desecration, would be to allow the ministrations of Dissenting ministers at funerals, both in churches and churchyards, but to restrict all, whether Churchmen or Dissenters, to the use of our burial service, allowing to Dissenters the permission to snake any selections they please from it, to leave out any parts -they please, or, if they please, to have a silent service.—I am, P.S.—One reason I dread permitting fancy services to Dissen- ters is that, by-and-by, we should have Churchmen wanting to have their fancy services too, from which good Heaven de- liver us.
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