The New Unitarian Church

Long before half-past seven Wednesday evening the Unitarian church was crowdwith people, and beibre the exercises began hundreils were turned away, be'ng un able to gain admission, even to the hallway. The building has already been de goribed to our readers, and it will be only necessary here to say that the interior furnishings are fully in keeping with the tasteful exterior. The pulpit was profusely ornamented with flowers, and on the walls of the pailors, which are made to open into the auditorium, were tobe found the portraits of many eminent Unitarians. Tue service3 were oponed by an organ voluntary and anthem, followed by the invocation by Rev. J. L. Jones, of Chicago. Aft.er the singing of a hymn, Rev. F. E. Kittredge, of Muskegon, read a chaptt r from the bible. The statement concerning the building of the church was then read by the pastor, Rev. J. T. Sunderland. It wns both historical and financi il, and as it is of .e-ieral interest we publish it entire. Then fol'.owed cnngra'ulatory remarks; on the part of the Western Unitarian Assooiation, bv the secretary, Rev. Mr. Jones, and on the part ot the Uuitarians, by Miss August J. Chapín. The sermón was delivered by the Rev. Grindall Reynolds, of Boston, one of tlie most prominent of eastern Unitarianc It was a sermón approjiriate to lhe occasion - on the building up of the Church and Christian charaeter, and will be remembered by many as one of the flnest discourses ever delivered in this city. REV. MR. SUNDERLAND's ADPRESS. As we asemble here to dedícate this house of worehip, it is fitting that something phould be suid as to how it has con e to b Of course, time will not allow me to trace, even briefly, the causes which have led up to tais 'completed structure. But it is well for us to remember in the outset that it is here not alone because of what we have donp, but also quite as niucn Decause oí wnai uniei navo uuuc who have gone to their reward. Without Clianning tfaifl edifice would never have nrissn. If it had arisen without Theodore Parker it would have had to wait fifty years fiist. All the brave and saintly men who have wrought in our age or in the ages past tn lay the foundations of rational re ligion have been hewing stones for the substructure o( this church. Emerson and Priestly and John Milton were mighty quarrynien for us. So have been all ihe scientists. Mightiest quurryman of all for U9, sinoe Jesus,WBs Martin Luther, who with stálwart blows unearthed the long buried rock of Liberty of Individual Judgment in Religión, atid built modern Protestant Christianity pon it - tjius starting the movement whos legitímate and sooner or later certain outconw w, as we believe, LItiitananism or Rational Religión. But, not to go back so i'ar, tlie name of one man of our geneiation, bui now pas-sed on into the higher life, must be mentioned as especielly closely ri-lated to the erection of this editice. 1 rtfer, of coutse, to Rev. Charles H. Bngham, that learned, able and honored man who org.mized tlus religious society, and was for twelve years your pastor. As Moses, ot old, led the Children ol Israel through the wilderness to the Promised Land, but died without being permitted to enter, so Mr. Brigham led you on for years bravely and successfully through hardships and dicouragi-meots, but died without being allowed to pass over with you into that heritage which you so joyfully enter upon the possession of to-night. But none the less his devoted toil and leadership were necessary; and this house, which to-night we dedícate to truth and t) prsyer, should never be and bis twelve years of f ruitf ui work here. However it was not until more than two years after the close of Mr. Brigham's pastorate here, and a yer after his death, that the enterprise of building a new church was actually undertaken. The old original Methodist church edifice of Ann Arbor was bought by the Unitarian guciety soon after its org.inization, and tliere Mr. Brigham preached. But the building, old and poor and not well lighted, when this society obtained possession of it seventeen years ago, had been deteriorating ever since. About three years ago, at the beginning of the second year of my pastorate here, I asked a dozen or twenty of my flock to come together and let us talk about the old church and the need of a new and see if we could not discover some ray of light in the direction of a pos8ible better church smietime. A considerable number who are before me to-night remember that we met in the office of Judge Harriman in the then just complcted Court-house. We spent the whole evening talking, but all secmed dark to most. Only one person present besides your pastor Was visionary enougk to dare hope that anything bettor was in store for us tlian the poor old building where we were then worsliiping. That one person was a woman, and a ivoman who by her hopefalnes!", energy and self sacrilicing devotioa has contributed more than perhaps any other one of us all to bring about the result which our eyes now see. She is not able to be with us to-night, because compellfd to be away at t'ie cast in search of health, but her thoughts are here and her heart is here. This woman, our esteemed Mrs. Prof. Langley, I woll recollcct said near the close of that meeting in Judge Harriman'8 office, " I am sure it the gentlemen see no outlook that we ladies can at leat begin the creation of a building fund, in the hope that that may tme grow mto tne new cnurca mai we so much need." That was the brave initial word of hope and f'aith tht gave us this building. The w ornan that spoke it went home to make t good. Without delay anu ca'.led the ladi.es of the society together. and organized ïor work, and before the end of the year they had by their labor created a fund of $250. And thia was the least part of what they did that year. In their meetings for planning and work the aim before all was a new .church, and the talk was about the need and possibility of a new church; and as a result by the beginning of the next year a hope and a faith had been kindled all through the church, even among us men, that nomething could be done. Then came thejtractical work of ing out the hupe and the i'aith iuto realiziition in money gubscriptions, and church plntis on paper, and finally stone. I canoot, of oourse, go ulo the details of this. As sooo as wc let our wants be known and proved our earuestne?s and faith by going forward (.o do what we oould for ourselves, frienda at a distance carne forward geneiously to help us, individually, and through Üie National Unilarian ference aud tho Amencau U nitanan Asso ciation, a lot was purchased on State Street, at the head oL Liberty. Then, when it was found tliat we could get the lot which we now have, tln one first bought was sold and this was obtained. After months of study and worfe over plans, we fmally adoptcd tliat whicli we now see so happilv canied out. Not the leat part of our good fortuno was the se'eotion of an aichitect ofjsu. h r-.re art'stic taste and judgmenr, and the nmjiloyment of a bnilder who has clone hia work wi'h suoli fidelitv and thoroughnocs. I said tlie tirst monuy raised tor the new churcb was the result oL the labor ot our noble band of wompn. T!nt tlie children of the Siinday School helped also, and so did the Young People's Club, and so did nearly or quite every raemher of the Society, and some of them with a generosity thftt was beautiful and noble, and will not be forgotten. At first we raised all that we feit we could, and more than we had dared expect. And then finding that more money was needed, the subscription papers vere carried around again, and many subscribed a sfcond time. And thus with the generous aid of our f rienda at a distance, and a thousand dollars from the proceeds of the sale of the old church, the tunda were seoured to give us our present centrally Icnated lot and beautiful and commodius building with its furnishingü, at a cost of nearly $19,000. It will be interestin? to vou to know that the first money given for the new church by any one at a distance was twen ty dollars from Rev. J. H. Allen, of Cambridge, Massiehusettp. who was your minister for a yenr, whose memory is he'd in so high esteem among you all, snd who has been planning for many months t.o be present at our dedieation, but is prevented by our liaving to postpone bevond onr expected date. The first money paid in for the new church by any resident of Ann Arbor was $25 from that remnrkable woman 80 widely known throughout the city, Mr?. Rhoda Fuller, who has now pas ed her ninety-second birthday. One hundred dollars to place upon our w:illá all this beauliful lettering and these inscriptions which preach so elepan'iy our gospel to the eyes of all who c me within our wals was pi ven by one of our lailies of very limited me.-ms who does not pcrniit me to mention her name. The largest subscription from any single person at home or abroad carne from the late tfovernor JJao;ley, of Detroit, whose portrait we hope to havo soon hanging in our parlors. The late Mr. V. S. George, of Laiisiiifj, editor of the Lansing Republican, before hip death, promised to give us the lal one hundreil dollars to enable ns to dedícate free of de' t. And I am glad to be able to tnnounce to you tliat that one hurrdred dollars bas already been paid by Mr. Q-eorge's widow, atid we we able to dedicate with house and grounda and Curnishings all paid for. Of the churebes abrnad that hclped us, the largest guma catne frora L'nit.y Churoh and the Church of the Mcssiali, Chicago, the Church of the Mesiah, St. Louis, Rev. Mr. Forbush's Church in Detroit, Rev. E. E. Hole's, Rev. M. J. Savage's and the First Church, Boston, and Dr. Bollo ws' and Rev. Robert Collyer's Churches in New ï"ork. The money lor the purchase of our organ was contributed by the friends and tonner parishioners of Rev. Mr. Brigham, in Taunton, Massachusetts, and the money to fit up and equip our Reading room and to furnish our Library roem with shelves, was given by Mr. Brigham's relatives in Brooklyn, iSew York. The money also to purchase our set of pulpit furniture was a special pilt from a warm triend and admirer oL Mr. Brighain, Mr. Cyrus Lothrop, of Korth Easton, Massachusetts. I need not say how pleasant it is to us all who knew Mr. Brigham so weli and honored him so much to have his memory perpetuated in all these ways in connection with our new church home. I am sure, we are all deeply grateful to the friends at a distance, who have thus enabled us to link his name more closely and permanently with the work here whose foundations he laid so well. I should be glad to speak the names of all at ho:ne and abroad who have contributed to the building of this church; but, of cours?, this I must not do. If most of those whom I have raentioned are givers of the larger sums, let it not be unstood from this that ihe smaller gifts have been the Ies3 appreciated. On the contrary, some ot ilie very noblest and most prized offerings that have beon poured into our treasury have coine from the poor - from persons who in subscribing their five dollars or their two dollars or their dollar have given even more liberftlly than many who have contributed the largest sumí. While I wish as your minister to thank you for wl.at you have all done, I desire especially to thank those of you who out of imited means have given so freelv to the cause whiuh we all in common love. I must not fail to speak a word further abont our Library and Reading Room. It Unn enm iYia fuut hipn iTiv pumftst desire. as it has also been tho degire of many of ' you, to establish a Religious and Ethical Library in the now ohurch, and to devote to t and to tbs purposes of a Reading Room, a part of oor building. We have planned our churoh with this in view. When we begin we knew only to a limited extent where the money was coming from to furnish such rooms or to purchase the needed books. But we went fjrward with faith and earnest purpose, and the money has come. The Woman's National Auxiliary Conference {at its meeting in Saratoga two years ago finding out what we were trying to do gave U8 $000 to begin the purchase of booka with. Four or five hundred volumes, chiefly of Unitarian literature have been sent me by friends at a distante. Three or four hundred dollars have been raised from other sources. Mr. Ezra Seaman, of this city, left us at his death one tliousaitd dollars the interest to be uscd perpetually tbr the parchase of books. And finally, as I have already said, relatives of your l'orraer pastor in Brooklyn, New York, eontributed roeans t,o ñt up and furnish our rooms. Thus we are ablo to set out with a library of a thousand volumes, the larfjer nuniher ot" tliem purchased and caiefully gelected by ourselve-. We caODOt but bolieve that o ir Library and iteaaing nooin wiu ue n important adjunct to our church work. Our books are niainly but not exclusively rjligious aml pthii-al; but we have en(lt-nvored to keep our interpretación of religión the broadest, and to make our ;voluíiies representativo in the largest andfairest w-ay of the best religioua thought of the age and the worid. You have noticed in coming in here the portraits of a considerable immber of eminent representatives of our Unitariau faith looking down on you and greeiing youfrom the walls of our vestibule and Reading Room and parlor. We have 1 !___ O. amé i i ....... fn Minf olí ii' 1 h placed ttiose races mere su mau bu wuu come within these walls may know that iu inviting men to listen to our thought and tojoin our religious fellowship we are ínviling them to the faith and fellowship oL many of the noblest and most honored men and women that this conntry has yet produced. It is not only we who invite the citizens of Arm Arbor and the thinking students of our University to a candid eonsideration of the principies of Rational Christianity, which Unitarianism mans, butit is Channing, and Bellowsand Emer son, and Bryaut andLowell and Longfellow and a host of others equally honored by us all, that extends the same invitation. Only word more, and that s to express the gratitude to God which I ara sure we feel at this anspicious hour, thal our task of chnrch-building, so far ds house and nutward appointmentn of worship are oonoerued, is ut last dono, and so well done, and t.o cali your tbought earnestly to the f et that important as all thii is, ït is after all only important in view ofwhat m yet to come. God bas ponnitted us to build this cotnlortable and attractive hotwe ol stone. VT cali it a ohurch. But let us not furgt-t that soch a usu of the word ohureb is only a lignre of speech. The real churcfa, fat which we mnst care ir.finitely more tlian for any vealls ur tipilings or adoniings of nian's Imnds, is built of huruan lives. Men and wotnen and childi-en are the gtones that go to construct its walls. And now that the oiuer work is done, my people, my brolhers, let us enter upon the higher work beforc us with a 7.e&l and devotion whioh we have never feit.