ABSTRACT A RHETURICAL ANALYSIS OF THE PREACHING OF CLOVIS GIILHAN CHA PPELL by Harold Ross Cherry This study is an examination of the preaching of Dr. Clovis Gill- ham Chappell, pastor in the Ivfethodist Episcopal Church, South, and The Vethodist Church for more than forty years, analyzing his homiletical theory and practice in terms of recognized rhetorical theory, with a view ‘u>isolating some of the factors contributing to his pulpit success. The method employed in this study is the historical-'critical method. This involves going into the subject's background for relevant Inognaphical material pertaining to the shaping of our speaker, and con- Siders his beliefs and his times. His homiletical theory is analyzed and mm.into a rhetorical framework. Finally, a critical examination is made 0." three of Chappell's sermons. Clovis Chappell's rhetorical biography reveals that he has given Ids entire active career to the pastoral ministry, most of which has been in downtown churches in major cities. This stands in contrast to the scenes of his youth, which were in rural, western Tennessee. His family life of these early years left a very positive influence upon him, being reared in a staunch, Christian home, in which the church and the minister were highly esteemed. Theologically, Chappell prefers the label, Pl Harold Ross Cherry "evangelical," to describe his religious beliefs, which would fall into the "conservative" section of the Methodist theological spectrum. Chappell's concept of preaching is (1) that it is important and efficacious in the life of the Christian Church, that the tides in the history of Christianity are directly related to the quality of preaching in a given period: (2) that it is a divine-human endeavor, containing both divine and human dynamics; (3) that the sermon is the climax and focal point of the worship service, with the preceding elements of worship pre- paring the way for the message: and (u) that preaching functions to induce men toward some form of decision, whether of faith or of action. Though he has not developed a full-orbed theory of homiletics, his lectures embraced in his book, Anointed to mac , and other statements, provide a fairly comprehensive system which touches most of the important elements in a complete system of rhetoric. In the area of Invention he deals with such matters as audience adaptation, the search for materials of development, the use of illustrations, and suggestions that correspond with logical proof, ethical proof, and emotional proof. In the area 101‘ Arrangement he gives careful attention in both theory and practice to the outlining of a message, and how to begin and conclude. His theory of Style stresses the factor of simplicity above other factors. As to Delivery, our speaker believes that speaking from "memorized notes " is superior to other forms of delivery. Among the more salient findings are these: (1) Chappell has demonstrated that Bible preaching can be “popular" or well received in twentieth-century America: (2) In the words of Andrew Blackwood, "Dr. Chap- pell shows how to serve as a Biblical preacher without becoming an expos- itor or an exegete";1 (3) His most commonly used sermon type is the Harold Ross Cherry biographical sermon, which, through the use of narration and description, becomes an effective medium for conveying Biblical teachirg: (it) His use of a "personalized" approach, by which he converts abstract truth into dramatic forms, is surely an important factor in Chappell's success; and (5) His mode of delivery (i.e., from memorized notes), which allows for what Chappell calls "release of personality, " is worthy of more attention by preachers and other speakers. 1Andrew W. Blackwood, Preaching in Time of Reconstruction (New York: A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS OF THE PREACHIBB OF CIOVIS GILLHAM CHAPPELL By Harold Ross Cherry A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILSOPHY College of Communication Arts-mDepartment of Speech 1970 fl , .. l 0 ~ {/51/ it""i/ /- I ' 4‘ l"... ) / .- 1 I @Copyright by HAROLD ROSS CHERRY I971 A CK NOY'TLE DGENENTS It is with sincere gratitude that I come to this hour which climaxes many'years of study. I am grateful to God for the blessings of health and well-being, and for the opportunity that has been mine of pursuing higher education. Truly we live in a land of great oppor- tunity and many blessings. Dr. Clovis G. Chappell, the subject of this study has been very cooperative and helpful in aiding in any way possible the progress of this investigation. His granting of interviews and answering of corres- :nndence, all in a most congenial spirit, have been sincerely appre- ciated. Dr. Kenneth G. Hance, graduate adviser and my committee chairman, ins been a great inspiration and encouragement from the time of our first meeting. His devotion to Christian ideals and to service beyond the call of duty are well known. Appreciation is also expressed to Dr. David C. Ralph, Dr. Gordon In Thomas, and Dr. Francis M. Donahue, the other members of my committee, ‘m0,‘with Dr. Hance, were the teachers for the majority of my classes leading up to this study, and who each showed a personal interest. I am also indebted to the First United Brethren Church of Lansing aYidthe Banner Street United Brethren Church of Grand Rapids for the mmortunity'of attending school while also serving them as pastor. Last, but not least, I acknowledge my debt to my wife, Ruby, and ‘Nn‘four children, who have borne with a husband and father who has too o“'ten been otherwise occupied. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS A CKNO‘UfllEmE’TEh‘TS O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 O O O O O O I’ITRODUCTIO?~3............................ Chapter I. II. III. IV. V. A RFTTORICAL HIOGRAPHY OF CLOVIS G. CHAPPELL . . . . . . . . Early Life Education Steps Toward the Ministry THE THEOLOGY OF CLOVIS CHAPPFII. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sources of Theology Doctrine of God Doctrine of Man Doctrine of Christ Doctrine of Salvation Doctrine of Last Things THE CHURCH OF CLOVIS CHAPPELL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beginnings of Yethodism in England Its Implantation in America Agitation and Schism in the Methodist Episcopal Church Methodist Doctrine Noral Reform and Social Concern Methodist Polity Unification THE SOCIAL.AND ECCLESIASTICAL CLIMATE OF CHAPPELL'S TIFE . . Conditions at the Dawn of the Twentieth Century Social Change, 1900-1950 The Ecclesiastical Wbrld, 1900-1950 CHAPPELL'S PHILOSOPHY AND THEORY OF PREACHING . . . . . . . His Concept and Philosophy of Preaching His Theory of Invention iii 17 43 63 98 iv Chapter Page VI. CHAPPELL'S ARRAWEMENT, STYLE, AND DEHWRY: TIEORYANDPRACTICEeIeeeeeeoeooeoeeeoe 1?l Arrangement--Theory and Practice Style--Theory and Practice Delivery-~Theory and Practice VII. CHAPPELL'S PRACTICE IN SPECIAL,AREAS . . . . . . . . . . lug Biographical Preaching Case Study: "A Thrilling Discovery-~Jacob" Series from a Bible Book Case Study} "John's Debt to Christ" The Ministry of Jesus Case Study: "The Good Samaritan" VIII. SUNNARY AND CONCLUSIONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ?1U Summary of Findings Conclusions BIBIAImRAPI-IY O O I O O O C O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 a?7 A PPR“ DICE O O O O O I C O O O O O O O O O 0 O O O O O O O O 0 O P 3? I. Sermon: The Good Samaritan II. Nassanetta Springs Interview III. Telephone Interview IV. Outlines of Twelve Sermons V. Initial Exchange of Correspondence between Dr. Chappell and Harold Cherry INTRODUCTION Statement of Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate a successful preacher of note on the contemporary American scene, and to analyze his homi- letical theory and practice in terms of rhetorical theory in the class- ical tradition, with the intent of discovering those principles and tnmctices followed by Dr. Chappell which have contributed to his preaching success. This is in harmony with a basic belief of the rhetorician, Aristotle, who believed that speech is an art that can be studied and analyzed and reduced to principles which make for effective practice of that art. Homiletics is such an art and has been formulated into theory and principles of effective practice. Clovis Gillham Chappell as a Subject for Study Clovis G. Chappell was born at Flat Wbods, Tennessee, January 8, 188?, and is now into his eighty-ninth year (summer of 1970), and still follows an active speaking schedule. Today he makes his home at waverly, Tennessee, going out from there into several states to accept speaking appointments. This writer heard Dr. Chappell speak twice in August, 1969, at the Nassanetta Springs Bible Conference, near Harrison- burg, Virginia. He was ordained to the ministry by the Fethodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1908, and has had a long and fruitful ministry. According to M 3433 in Amzica and 1m flh_o_ in .Vethodism, which have included his V vi biography for many years, he has served ten pastorates, most of them in major cities scattered across the southern states and in Washington D. C. (the Mbunt vernon Place Church). He retired from the First Meth- odist Church of Charlotte, North Carolina, in 19h0. His denomination has expressed their confidence in him by elect- ing him to ten of its General Conferences, which, when one considers that these conferences meet on a quadrennial basis, represents a consid- erable skein of years. Both during Chappell's active pestering years and now in his retirement years, he has received many invitations to speak in churches of various denominations, at inter-church gatherings, and at Bible conferences. A feature article in the Marion, Indiana, Chronicle, of April a, 1957, states that "Dr. Clovis G. Chappell . . . was voted one of the ten greatest preachers in America by the Christian Century." (A check was made with the Christian Century in June, 1970, resulting in the report that their immediate check does not reveal this, though some of his ser- mons have appeared in their pages.) Dr. Chappell has been a frequent publisher of sermons across several decades. This is unusual in that he himself admits that sermons are not as popular reading today as they were some years ago. There are thirty-six books from his desk in print, most of which are volumes of sermons. limitations of Study The approach to this study is that of a broad approach to Dr. Chappell's ministry. By "broad" approach we mean looking at his preach- ing career in general, investigating its antecedents, learning his views vii on homiletics, and studying his practice of preaching. In the case of some other speakers this may not be the best approach, but it seems to fit better the life and experience of Clovis Chappell. Some other studies of public speakers have been limited, for example, to a certain span of time, or to a certain set of speeches, or to a certain outstand- ing pastorate: but since Dr. Chappell's career does not focus on any one particular pastorate, but was carried on in many different cities on a consistently high plane, it seems wise to take the broad approach. Further, because there is sufficient material available from which to learn.many of his theoretical principles of homiletics, this study includes both theory and practice. Mr. Chappell delivered a series of lectures on preaching at Candler School of Theology, Emory [haversity3 Atlanta, Georgia, which resulted in his book, Anointed t9 Eigggh, from which a majority of his principles are derived: and there are sermons, both printed and taped, which provide considerable material for analysis. Justification for this Study From the beginning of American history, preaching has been a prominent form of public address in our land. It continues to be one of the most common kinds of public address today. Yet Christian preach- ing is struggling to maintain its place of interest in our society today, and even in the church. Therefore, it is of concern to those who believe in Christian preaching to study preachers of prominence with a view to identifying factors in their success, in order to cure the causes of 'weakness and improve the level of preaching. Fore specifically, Clovis G. Chappell appears to be a speaker of sufficient stature that we may feel satisfied that we are not studying viii an obscure man, but one of some prominence and success. As some evidence of his prominence, (1) he has been included nary times in [@313 King in m: (2) his sermons and biography have been included in a number of magazines and anthologies of sermons; (3) he has had a long career in‘prominent city'churches: and (h) he is in continual demand as a pub- lic speaker. To elaborate on the second item mentioned above, he was asked to suhnit a section for an older volume, _I_; _l_I Egg, it 9113 .323193 t_.g m: and very recently he was requested "to furnish.two sermons and biograph- ical matter for two professors of the Baptist Seminary of Fort Worth," who "were getting out a book or books on certain prominent preachers of the 1.31: few centuries,"1 which publication, he is told, will be out in 1970. As typical of his requests to speak, we would mention his repeated appearance for many smmers since 1923 on the platform of the Massanetta Springs Bible Conference in Virginia; and his appearing on local inter- church programs, such as a Lenten Series on a citywwide basis in Hunting- ton, Indiana, in 19146, where this writer had the privilege of hearing Dr. Chappell. Further, this study should have merit because it is through the analysis of the practice of an art that improvement comes. We need continually to study what practitioners of preaching are doing and say- ing about their art. It is from our study of practice that om: theory and principles come, according to Thonssen and Baird.2 11n a letter to this writer, August 1+, 1969. zlester Thonssen and A. Craig Baird, Sggech mticigm (New York: The Ronald bees Company, 19h8), p. 16. ix Distinctiveness of Study While a few studies by seminary students have examined various aspects of Dr. Chappell's preaching, none, however, has employed the procedures of rhetorical criticism, or has attempted anything as compre- hensive as this study professes to do. Ole Aarvold prepared a thesis for the Master of Theology degree from Asbury Theological Seminary, in 1953, but it was much more limited in its approach. Since our speaker is living, inquiry was made of him: and he reports that though several inquiries have been made of him across the years, as far as he knows nothing has ever come of them, and "Therefore, so far as I know, the field is now clear for you."3 Research Method The method followed in this study is the historical research method. This involves going into our subject's background for relevant biographical material which seems to have contributed to the shaping of our speaker. There follows a study of those aspects of homiletical the- cry that are available, and a critical examination of several of his sermons e Thterials and Sources Among the materials available to draw upon in studying Dr. Chap- pell are: 1. His book, Anointed t9 Preach, a series of lectures on preach- ing, which supplies us with much of his stated homiletical thBOl'Ye 3In the letter cited--August h, 1969. x 2. An essay of several pages in EIMMQEMQ 2333, edited by Joseph Fort Newton, dealing with the method by which Chappell prepares and delivers his sermons, and his concept of what preaching should be today. 3. His mam volumes of sermons, thirty-four in all. 1+. Seven taped sermons--three in Andrews University Tape Library, and four in the possession of individuals. 5. Interviews given by Dr. Chappell to this investigator. Organization Chapter I presents a rhetorical background, investigating the early life of our speaker-~the forces which shaped him in his formative years, his influence toward and entrance into the ministry, his training, and his career. Chapter II presents a study of some of the theological beliefs held by Dr. Chappell, as derived largely from the sermons themselves. Chapter III studies the church of Clovis Chappell, including the years before its division, the years of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and the early years after unification. Chapter IV discusses the social and ecclesiastical climate of the years in which Chappell actively ministered. Chapter V considers his philosophy of preaching together with some general principles of how the work of sermon preparation should be under- taken. Chapter VI deals with Chappell's theory and practice in the rhetor- ical areas of Arrangement, Style, and Delivery. Chapter VII msents three case studies of sermons, representing 3d. different areas of specialty in his preaching. Chapter VIII consists of a summary of the findings resulting from the investigation, and conclusions concerning several aspects of his theory ani motice. CHAPTER I A RHETORICAL BIOGRAPHY OF CLOVIS G. CHAPPELL Clovis Gillham Chappell is the product of an American farm background and of a Christian home--a fruitful combination which to- gether has put many a young man or young woman into Christian service. Until recent years when our society has become more highly urbanized, many of the men of the pulpit have been sons of the soil as well as products of Christian homes. As to the latter ingredient, Chappell believes that prayerful Christian homes have had wide impact in influencing both men for the pulpit and Christian parishioners for the pews. In one of his sermons he says: If all the missionaries on the field and all the men in our pulpits today who were reared in unchristian homes were to forsake their posts, I do not think they would be greatly missed. But if all those on mission fields and in our pulpits who were reared in homes definitely Christian were to forsake their posts, the mission fields would be largely deserted, and our pulpits would fall into silence. By far the greatest recruiting ground for the ministry is the Christian home. There are many reared in such homes who have known from their childhood that they were destined for the work of the ministry. God's favorite way of speaking to us is through the voice of consecrated parents. On January 8, 1882, Clovis G. Chappell was born near Flat Woods, Tennessee, to William and Mary Gillham Chappell. He grew up on a farm in Perry County, along with five brothers and three sisters, he being the youngest of nine children. This home, like many rural homes of that lClovis G. Chappell, Anointed £3 Preach (New York and Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1951), p. 23. l [‘0 day which were also blessed with large families, did not know material prosperity. However his parental home provided a heritage of greater worth than material goods in that there was a stable family life, blessed with reasonable harmony and manifestation of human love and concern, along with the Christian atmosphere which these parents pur- posely sought to maintain. Evidently the Chappell community was not one of those common areas in the South where the Christian Church had found a ready accept- ance and had become the focal point of community life. In some sections of the upper South, the Christian faith had enjoyed such a ready accept- ance that the area had become described as the ”Bible belt." By con- trast our speaker describes his community in these words: "The community in which I was brought up was by no means a religious community. We had preaching only at rare intervals. Sunday school privileges were poor indeed."2 This home, however, through the love and instruction offered there, provided for what was not available through a regular community church. This family worshiped both at home and at church as opportunity was afforded; and preachers were frequent guests in this home, as we shall have reason later to note. The love of these parents for their children and the prayer life of this home are two elements of which Dr. Chappell particularly takes note. This was a home where each of the children, though numerous, 2ClovisG. Chappell, The Village Tragedy (Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins Co., 1921), p. 67. was individually loved. In one of his sermons he describes the family life of his home thus: my father and mother had quite a large family of children. But they did not love us as a group simply. They called us each by name and loved us individually. I love to think of their love 3 for all their children. I like to think also of their love for me. Prayer was as natural and as regular in this home as were eating and sleeping. Dr. Chappell frequently alludes in his sermons to the prayer life of this home. ”But father and mother knew how to pray.”4 His father was ". . . a man of prayer. He prayed about all his needs. . . ”5 These parents maintained a regular hour of family prayer,6 at which time the father read from the Bible and prayed. This manner of home life did not produce resentment toward parents or toward religion, but resulted in wholesome attitudes. From his store- house of recollections of childhood he frequently refers tenderly to both his parents. Of his mother he mentions the memory of ”the old front gate, and the front porch where Mother used to wait when we came home from 7 school" and ". . . as I think of my own mother I think of one who was sunny and full of laughter, with never a thought of herself.”8 31bid., p. 15. 4Ibid., p. 67. 561ovis G. Chappell, estions Jesus Asked (New York and Nashville: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 194 , p. . 6Clovis G. Chappell, When the Church H32 Young (New Yerk and Nashville: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, n.d.5, p. 12. 7Clovis G. Chappell, Sermons g§_New Testament Characters (New York: George H. Doran Company, 1925), p. 120. 8Clovis G. Chappell, Cha 11's Special Qay_Sermons (Nashville: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1953,, p. 55. Of his father he states, "As I think of my father, I think of one who was more rugged and stern, but whose unselfish devotion to his own could be no more doubted than hers. . . ."9 His attitude toward his father is nowhere better revealed than in this reference: I see a face strong and tender and pure. I think of one who lived not for himself, but for others, who offered himself as a daily sacrifice fer the service of those he loved. I think of one who could be stern at times, but who could also be as gentle as a mother. I remember one night as a lad, when it was thought I could not live till morning. It was Father who came to tell me about it, and to help me to face it unafraid. It was he that undertook, the best he could, to gather me into his fatherly arms, and to hand me into the arms of that infinite Faiaer from whom every family in heaven and earth takes its name. It is readily assumed that the influence of homes is great in the making of men and women, and the heritage which the elder Chappells passed on to their children was certainly one which went far in the making of Clovis and of his brothers and sisters. Some years ago he stated concerning this family, "And every child reared in that home is an active Christian today. And of the six boys, three of them are today in the active itinerant Methodist ministry."ll In these words, he credits his parents with deep moral influence upon him: "If my father and my mother had not given me the moral momentum of unstained parentage, I might be far away from God tonight."12 Hence this is an important aspect of the rhetorical background of our speaker. His home was effecmual upon him morally and spiritually, 9Ibid., p. 65. 10Clovis G. Chappell, Sermons on the Lord's Prayer (Nashville: Cokesbury Press, l93h), p. 3h. llChappell, The Village Tr ed , p. 67. 12Ib1d., p. 108. u '— nn-‘ ...1 h. .. ‘Iso.,, e 4 a q inculcating in him a faith and devotion which he was both to adopt into his own life and to proclaim as a way of life to others, through many decades and in many places. The seed and core of Dr. Chappell's preaching ministry were deposited in him by his home and by his early church life. Another facet of Clovis' boyhood which is reflected so fre- quently in his later preaching is his love of the country and his love of nature, both of which show up so often in his sermon illus- trations. He speaks of the majestic hills and wonderful springs around his home, of sassafras and of evergreen trees. He uses for an illus- tration As there are evergreen trees, there are also evergreen lives. . . . I remember an evergreen tree that grew on a hillside above my old home. I have gone to it in the flush of early spring when other trees were decking themselves in their Easter finery and found it commonplace. Then I have gone in the noontide hush of midsummer when all the other trees were in full dress, and it looked more commonplace still. I have gone again in the glory of autumn when its neighbors had decked themselves in their royal robes of scar- let and gold, and it looked positively out of place. But I have gone also in the bleak days of winter, and thenlit stood out in its amazing beauty. Its leaf had not withered. 3 Speakers often draw heavily upon their personal experiences for purposes of illustration, and Dr. Chappell's youth and boyhood on the farm supply him with numerous illustrations. Education The elder Chappells did believe in education and sought to en- courage their Children to participate in the educational Opportunities 13Chappell, Anointed to Preach, pp. 123, 12h. available to them. Clovis did not readily take to school, being more interested in the out of doors than in books. However an incident happened which proved to be a turning point in his educational inter- ests. I well remember a turning point in my own life. It was the first time that I ever hungered to know. As a lad I was the despair of the family. At the age of twelve I could not read with any degree of decency. I not only did not know, but what was far worse, I did not care to know. Then one day I was made to think. It came about in this faShion. A beautiful little girl, slightly younger than'myself, came to our home for a visit. She was a great reader, but she knew nothing of the country. I was skillful with the horses as well as with the calves. I was an excellent rider, and in her eyes I became a hero overnight. . . . One morning I went into her room.to find her ill. She called to me and said: "I am ill this morning. I want you to read me a story out of one of these books." I felt flattered. No one had ever asked me to read befbre. They knew better. But my pleasure was short-lived. I could not read her story. But I thought there might be a "get- ting-out" place. So I said: "I can't read this. I read in the fourth reader." "Get me that," was the reply. I went for the book and, to my sorrow, I found it. . . . She found a story that she desired to hear, but again I failed. Then in her surprise she laughed at me a little. But what stung far more, I saw pity in her eyes. She was actually sorry for her one-time hero. Then she said: "YOu ought to be in the first reader." . . .But what I said to myself was: "Someday I am going to know as much as you."1h From attendance at public school young Clovis had the privilege of going on to the Webb School, a preparatory school at Bell Buckle, Tennessee, and well known for its emphasis upon Latin and Greek. He was now'mmch more interested in an education and liked the school and made good progress there. The headmaster appears to have had a very salutary influence upon him. Chappell records: I owe to "Old Sawney," as the boys affectionately called the head- master of this school, an unpayable debt. I had not been long at Bell Buckle before Old Sawney took time to take me alone for a personal conference. He talked.to me about his hopes for me and about my own possibilities. He had the reputation of being rigid 1hClovis G. Chappell, Sermons from the Psalms (New Ybrk and Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1931}, pp. 7T,7§:- . in his discipline, as he was, But I was braced and heartened to face it by the assurance that he was interested in me personally. There were timeslghen I had to lean my shoulders hard against this conviction. Following the webb School, Chappell sought education at the college level, though not remaining to take a degree. He attended Trinity College at Durham, North Carolina (later to become Duke Uni- versity) for one year (1902-03), and shortly thereafter obtained a scholarship to Harvard University, where he attended for one year (190h-05). Years later in one of his sermons he refers to his apply- ing fer this scholarship, and to his being the first man from his back— woods village that ever sought to enter Harvard. Years ago, as a young chap, I was eager to go to college but was very short of funds. Therefore I took a long chance and made application for a scholarship to Harvard University. One night I went over to the little village post office for the mail. There was only one letter. I saw that the letter was addressed to me. When I Opened it, it read like this: "Ybur application for a scholarship to Harvard University has been favorably considered. Please report at Lower Massadhusetts Hall, September 28 at ten A.M." 16 His attendance at Harvard lasted for only one year. At this point in the life of our speaker, the call of teaching seemed to be the vocational door opening to him. He spent a few years as a school teacher, both in the Tennessee backwoods and in a small Tennessee town. Frequently in his later sermons he was to draw upon his school teaching experiences for sermonic material. These few years in the field of education also became a part of our speaker's reservoir of resources. 15Clovis G. Chappell, I£_Ipwere Young» (New Ybrk and Nashville: Abingdon Press, 19h5), p. ho. 16Clovis G. Chappell, In Parables (New Ybrk and Nashville: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 19537: pp. 15,15. One of the fruits of his few years at teaching was the meeting of Cecil Hart, the girl who was to become his companion in the ministry for more than forty years. He relates the meeting of his wife-to-be in one of his sermons, in these words: So many of our finest opportunities come to us unsought and unex- pected. For instance, years ago when I was just out of college, I took up my'residence in a village in the heart of the hills of Tennessee. I did not go to this village in search of romance. I went to teach school. But among my students was a girl, sweet with the loveliness of sixteen summers. My salary that year was paid in full. I think I gave at least an earnest account of'myb self as a teacher. But by far the finest result of that year's work was the winning of thf girl who has been my wife through nearly forty lovely years. 7 Of this marriage two sons came to bless that home, namely Clovis Junior and Robert. Dr. Chappell later dedicated one of his books, 233 Rules EgrlLiving, to these sons, "whose unfailing loyalty has helped me preach without apology and without embarrassment."18 Steps Toward The Ministry Having traced Clovis' progress through the years of youth at home, his education, and his entrance into teaching and into family life, we now return to an earlier point in his life to trace what we might call his "spiritual" experiences which served to influence him toward the ministry. The religious atmosphere and training of his home have already been mentioned, but we now look at the lad inwardly as to its effect upon him. Chappell does occasionally refer to his "conversion," but he merely states it as a fact without elucidating on the time or 17Chappell, When t_1'1_e' Church was Young, pp. hl,h2. 18Clovis G. Chappell, 223 Rules £23 Living (Nashville: Cokes- bury Press, 1938), p. 5. circumstances of it. He does record, "Speaking out of my own personal experience, the most difficult surrenders that I have had to make were not those that I made at the time of my conversion."l9 Aside frdm allusions to his own religious experience, it is obvious that he strongly believed in such an experience or time of decision, for it was his frequent practice to close his sermons with a call to decision, a personal invitation to discipleship, a call to repentance. For example, in his sermon, "A Glimpse of the After Life," he exhorts, Remember, too, that though some men are lost, no man needs to be lost. Every man.can be saved if he will. This minute you can be saved if you will only be wise enough and brave enough to make a right choice. "Him that cometh unto me 128111 in no wise cast out." 'Will you come? ‘Will you come now" Surely Chappell's own personal religious experience was one of the first stepping stones in the stairs by which he ascended into the ministry. Another notable influence came from his boyhood home, by way of the attitude that prevailed there concerning ministers. His parents treated their ministers with esteem and high regard, a practice which taught him also to have a high regard for the ministry. In Anointed 33 232322, his lectures to ministers at Candler School of Theology of Emory University in 1951, he stated: . . . it is true that my first wistful look at the ministry came through the influence of my father and mother, I was drawn toward this high calling both by the training they gave me and by what they were in.themselves. I was influenced further by the honor that they showed the minister who was a frequent visitor in our ”Chappell, Semons 22 trig Lord's Pra er, p. 217. 2oChappell,ghg_Vi11§ge Tragegy, p. 106. 10 home. Early it came into my boyish heart to say, "I should like to be the kind of man that my father and mother could honor as they honor their minisfiir." Therefore I looked longingly at the ministry from boyhood. Another important ingredient in the making of a minister, according to the understanding of Dr. Chappell, is that of a divine call. He believes that the credentials of a minister are more noble in ori- gin than the authority of a license upon a piece of paper signed by men. He believes that the preacher of the word of God needs the authority and inner support of a divine call sending him into such a ‘work. In his lectureship at Candler School of Theology he declared: ‘we believe in the preacher's call because we meet it again and again upon the pages of the Bible. To read the Old Testament, for instance, is to come upon a company of men.who are unique. These men can be accounted for neither in terms of their times nor in terms of their environment. They are men who are deeply earnest. They are possessed by a compelling sense of mission. . . . Though men.of deep humility, they dare to begin theirzgessages with the startling affirmation, "Thus saith the Lord." He continues his support of a belief in these divine credentials by citing the record of church history upon the pages of which we find the record of God-called missionaries, preachers, and evangelists, from St. Paul on down through the succeeding centuries, and that such a call continues to be the compelling experience of hundreds of sincere, earnest men of today. After he discusses some of the various ways and agents that God uses to beckon men into the ministry, he relates the climax of his own cogitations concerning the ministry. Not feeling clearly'and strongly this inner urge as yet, he turned to another vocation, that of teaching. 21Chappell, Anointed _tg Preach, p. 23. 22Ibid., p. 12. 11 At this time he believes that God brought circumstances to bear to give him the clear satisfaction he wanted. He relates: 'My final decision to become a minister was brought about through a wise layman. This man was superintendent of the Sunday school in the town where I was then teaching. He took time to talk to me about entering the ministry. ‘When I told him that I was not averse to this vocation, that I had turned from.it only because I felt it was too high for me, he gave me encouragement. Above all else he set me a task. He asked me to give a resume of the lesson each Sunday morning to the entire school. It was as I preached these teneminute sermons that I plucked up the courage to believe that God.might use me in the vocation that had always been.my first choice. Thus God often calls through human voices.23 Though Dr. Chappell turned out to be a gifted preacher, and he was blessed with a number of talents for it, he nevertheless had some problems in his own personality to overcome. Liberty in speaking, both in public and in home visitation, was not natural and easy for him. He reports having a very real battle with timidity. There are those who make light of timidity. This is especially true of those who have never known its tortures. Personally, I know a little how to sympathize with Timothy. I have been gripped by utter terror at the very thought of appearing in public. I have had.my knees shake so on such an occasion that I have seen some in the gfidience nudge each other and call attention to my trembling. . . . And again he relates: "As a young minister, I was tremendously timid. I have gone to make calls when I dared not go in. I was afraid that I would have nothing to say when I got in. . . ."25 As to formal preparation for entering into the work of the ministry, he had none specifically. He did have the two single years of college at Trinity College and at Harvard, from which he entered 233333., p. 21;. 2hChappell, If Iiwere Young, p. 81. 25Clovis G. Chappell, Living Zestfully' (Nashville: Abingdon— Cokesbury Press, 19104), p. 123. .. ~.' >-- e.‘ l ‘ o ' ’ .— o. ‘ ..-., ~l~ ',"o. s. ‘7' «x a‘ ‘ ._' ‘.. ‘ I I ‘5 V..- 5 ~. 1 g e e a e s I n I o .- 12 into teaching. He went from the classroom into the ministry without taking any formal theological training. In an interview with this writer in August, 1969, he said that he doesn't know that he has re- grets for having no seminary training. Nevertheless, he has read seminary books. Perhaps in defending the type of preparation for the ministry that he had, he states, "I talked the language of the people, not theological language."26 He did, howeveg,have ministerial prepara- tion by way of the Course of Study offered to Methodist preachers. Studies were pursued at home and examinations were given by authorized personnel of the church. Entrance into the active ministry was not easy for this budding young preacher. According to the Methodist system of those days, preachers were often licensed and quite promptly given an assignment of a Church or circuit of churdhes. Such was the case with our speaker. He relates: Almost immediately after I had been licensed to preach, I went to supply a circuit in a western state [Texas] . This circuit had fallen upon evil days. The pastor had had to quit under a black cloud. A local preacher who belonged to the circuit had been on mtfiffitim 221323352223 mini: “ad "hi”? $12315? y arriv was a c urc r1 . He goes on to describe how he preached on the first Sunday what he thought was his best of three sermons, which had been previously preached on the home folks. It was received with a cool response in the new setting. He was invited to have Sunday dinner in the home of the former pastor of the circuit. He describes the occasion thus: I went, but as soon as we entered his home, he disappeared. There was a large family, but not a single member was in sight. By and 26Interview, Appendix II. 27Chappe11, Anointed 39 Preach, pp. 26,27. 13 by the oldest daughter invited me in to dinner. I went, expecting at last to meet the family. I ate absolutely alone. I was not very hungry. Therefore when I had finished my dinner and looked about once more for some member of the family and had failed to find a single one, I took my departure. . . . I think that Supgay afternoon was the bitterest that has ever passed over my head. So his induction into the pastoral ministry was a disheartening one. After this disillusioning beginning, Clovis Chappell began to question and re-examine his call. Among his cogitations were, "Ybu have run without being sent. God has not called you. Ybu are only a fool."29 While he was in this state of uncertainty, a long distance telephone call came in a few days offering him a very attractive posi- tion in the field of education in his home state. He immediately re- signed his church appointment and turned his face homeward to Tennessee. However, young Chappell recovered himself, and in two years re-entered the active ministry. He reports in 1951, "Yet, be it said to the praise of my patient Lord, here I am.with more than forty years of joyous ministry behind me. These have been faulty years, but they have been in the main years of gladsome certainty."3O This insight into Dr. Chappell's induction into the ministry and his quest for certainty of the divine call to preach is important to the understanding of him and of many another preacher. He did not undertake the work of a gospel spokesman by his own choice, or from any confidence of his talents for such work, or from the attractiveness of the profession. His preaching must be interpreted in the light of his conviction that this was where God wanted him. He thus spoke with 381mm, pp. 27,28. 29Ibid., p. 28. 3°Ibid., p. 28. 1h authority, similar to the prophets of old, "Thus saith the Lord." He felt that his ministry had divine sanction and was backed up by God Himself, that his message did not consist of the mere opinions of men. A man of this persuasion speaks differently than one who arbitrarily undertakes suCh work from shallow or mundane reasons. The message and the authority behind the message become the important ingredients in this kind of communication process. In this respect much of what we might distinguish as "sacred rhetoric" would differ from "secular rhetoric." Much of Christian preaching looks to a given source for the foundation of its message, i.e., the Bible, and speaks with a sense of mission, believing that God has thus commanded one to speak. From this shaky beginning, Chappell went on to become an out- standing city pastor and preacher. His initial experiences produced in Dr. Chappell a commitment and dedication to the preaching ministry that held him steady through many decades to follow. On another of his early pastorates he found himself unwanted by some of the con- gregation, but for different reasons from that in the incident related above at the outset of his ministry. In this second case he was fol- lowing a very popular predecessor. His handling of the situation is very interesting to observe: The church to which I went did not want me. The pastor whom I followed was exceedingly popular. They felt that in loyalty to him.they must be disloyal to me. Therefore the pe0ple came day after day saying, "So-and-So is going to quit this church." And I would say, "Why?" And they would say, "Because Brother So-and- So has gone and you cannot carry on the work. lMoses is dead.'" And they kept that up almost every day for about six weeks. And then one Sunday morning I said, "I am ready this morning to write the letter of every man and woman who wants to leave. I have learned something this week. I saw a man buy'a bottle of soda pop. He knocked in the cork and it began to splutter and bubble till I thought he would lose it all. But he waited, and when.the splut- tering was over I saw nothing had escaped but bubbles and wind. 15 "Now," I said, "you bubbles and wind that have been talking about leaving all the while, g3 ahead. we can get along nicely without you. And nobody left. Dr. Chappell's church, the Methodist Episcopal Church South (later to become part of The Methodist Church), saw fit to use him in numerous downtown churches across the south and southwestern part of the United States. Aside from his first appointment to two churches in Texas simultaneously, which assignment he held only briefly, he held thereafter nine pastorates in major cities. Under the episcopal system of stationing pastors used by the Methodist Church, he went where he was assigned. Chappell thinks that he has served in down- town city churches longer than any other minister in AmericanMethodism.32 This list of churches includes the following: Epworth Method- ist Church, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Highland Park Church, Dallas, Texas; Mount Vernon Place Church, washington, D. C.; First Methodist ChurCh, Memphis, Tennessee; First Methodist Church, Houston, Texas; First Methodist Church, Birmingham, Alabama; St. Luke's Methodist Church, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Galloway Memorial Methodist Church, Jackson, Mississippi; and First Methodist Church, Charlotte, North Carolina, from which he retired in 191.9;33 Hence we notice that all of his active years were spent in the pastoral role, being involved in weekly preaching. Along with this, Dr. Chappell has received many invitations to speak as guest in many churches and on many plathrms. In August, 1969, while he was speaking 31Chappell, The Village Tra ed , pp. h2,h3. 321a a letter to Ole Aarvold, writer of a.Master of Theology thesis at Asbury Theological Seminary. 33Who's Who in America (Chicago: The A. N. Marquis Co., 1968), Vol. 35, 1958213959": 16 at the Massanetta Bible Conference, near Harrisonburg, Virginia, (where this writer had the privilege of hearing him and interviewing him), he alluded in his public address to the fact that he had been coming there since 1923, i.e., as speaker. In the two decades since his retirement Dr. Chappell has continued to preaCh actively and to publish several books. Through- out his life he has published approximately thirty-six books, most of them books of sermons. Since his retirement in l9h9 his speaking schedule has been nearly as active as before that time. He reports in a letter to this investigator, "I have preached on the average of approximately two hundred and fifty times a year. Consequently I would say I have preached about five thousand times in the twenty-one years since I retired."3h At least three institutions have seen fit to confer an honorary doctorate degree upon the Rev. Clovis Chappell. Duke University and Centenary College of Louisiana both conferred the honorary D. D. upon him.in 1920; and Birmingham Southern College, the Litt. D., in 1936. This is the record of the pertinent and available facts of the life of Clovis G. Chappell, presented in order that we may better under- stand and evaluate our speaker. 3hIn a letter to this writer, dated April 16, 1970. ‘ rv .. . f . e . ‘0‘ III _ h -- Ly. w “ n v .eu . a . u. .. e. . u . n‘ . I I v . ,,., N .. .s u CHAPTER II THE THEOLOGY OF CLOVIS CHAPPE'LL Introduction A speaker's beliefs, whether for one practicing sacred rhetoric or secular rhetoric, are an integral part of a man and his message, and therefOre must be considered in order to make an adequate analysis of him. Unless a speaker be some sort of sophist or demagogue or rhetori- cal charlatan, it is assumed that one's beliefs will form a vital part of one's message. One's philosophy or credo or moral convictions or religious convictions will provide the foundation stones upon which the speaker will build all his oratorical structures. They will be not only foundation stones but also a part of the very fiber of the message itself. It is very interesting to note that in the early years of the development of rhetoric, some considered rhetoric to have as its pur- pose the making known of the will of God. Everett Lee Hunt, in his interpretation of Plato, observes: [The] rhetorician will have such a high moral purpose in all his work that he will ever be chiefly concerned about saying that which is 'acceptable to God.' [Therefore, rhetorié] is not an instrument for the determination of scientific truth, nor for mere persuasion regardless of the cause; it is an instrument for making the will of God prevail. The perfect rhetorician, as a philosopher, knows the will of God.1 II“ Thonssen and A. C. Baird, §peech Criticism (New Ybrk: The Ronald Press Company, l9h8), p. S6. 17 18 Hence in the mind of Plato the theology of his day and rhetoric were to be conjoined. The Relation of Theology to Preaching It is assumed that one's theology is not something to be kept confined within a minister's study, but something to be communicated through preaching. Preaching devoid of all theology is hardly preaching, and neither should one divorce doctrine from practical Christian issues. 'w. E. Sangster comments that "It was a.maxim.of the pioneers of Protest- ant preaching that ‘doctrines must be preached practically and duties doctrinally.”2 In other words many believe that one's ethics and practice ought to have a theological basis. A.preacher may at times preach doctrinal sermons, but even when he is preaching moral or practical sermons his theology will quite naturally be a part of his practical exhortations. One's theology should.provide the rationale and sub-structure for all of one's preaching. A very excellent statement on the relationship of doctrine to preaching is found in the Lectures on Preaching of Phillips Brooks. But I cannot do my duty in making Christ plain unless I tell them of’Him all the richness I know. I must keep nothing back. All that has come to me about His nature or His methods by my inward or out- ward experience, all that He has told me of Himself, becomes part of the message that I must tell to those men whom He has sent me to call home to Himself. I will do this in its fullness. And this is the preaching of doctrine, positive, distinct, characteristic Christian Mtho o o o The truth is, no preaching ever had any strong power that was not the preaching of doctrine. The preachers that have moved and held men have always preached doctrine. No exhortation to a good life that does not put behind it some truth as deep as eternity can seize and hold the conscience. Preach doctrine, preach all the 2 H. E. Sangster, The Craft of Sermon Construction (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1951), p. 53. l9 doctrine that you know, and learn forever more and more; but preach it always, not tgat men may believe it, but that men may be saved by believing it. Hence a consideration of a speaker's beliefs (or theology) is an important part of a rhetorical analysis, and it warrants inclusion here. Chappell as a Doctrinal Preacher First we might appropriately ask, What is doctrinal preaching, or what is a doctrinal sermon? While the term "doctrinal sermon" is shallowly used by some people to denote sermons stressing points of denominational peculiarity or presenting controversial beliefs,b a nobler application of the term is used here. A doctrine may be defined as the entire body of Scriptural teaching upon any given subject. It may be concerned with the doctrine of sin, of atonement, of regeneration, etc. Hence a doctrinal senmon is really a Biblical sermon or a didactic sermon, conveying to the congrega- tion what the preacher believes to be the Bible teaching on a given sub- jcct or point of doctrine. All preachers are to some extent doctrinal preachers-~the difference is only in the degree that it is emphasized. Some men are given more to a "teaching" ministry, while others may pursue a "hortatory" emphasis. Dr. Chappell would not be a doctrinal preacher, per se, but is of a very practical slant. One finds frequent strands of theology inter- ‘woven in his messages, but seldom does one find a sermon that announces 3Phillips Brooks, Lectures on Preachin (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, Reprinted 1969), pp, I28:l§9. hJohn A. Broadus, gn;the Preparation and Delivery of Sermons, reV. by Jesse B. weatherspoon ‘(Néw'Ybrk: ’Harper & Brothers, 1955), p. 59. 20 itself as a doctrinal sermon. Probably the largest single block of his sermons would be those we would call "biographical." In these and other sermons he frequently seeks to encourage faith and hope in those who are despairing or unbelieving, emphasizes the importance of Christian family life, and issues the call to Christian discipleship. His non-doctrinal approaCh to preaching does by no means minimize the importance of theology to our speaker. In studying him and his preaching, one is impressed that here is a man with strong convictions and whose ministry is built upon distinctive Christian beliefs. In fact, most of what we are about to offer as the theology of Dr. Chappell has been derived from a search of a number of his senmons, which demonstrates the thesis that his theology does permeate his sermons. Chappell's Theology At this point we are not seeking to reconstruct the theology of Clovis Chappell's church, nor to describe the the010gical climate of his era, both of which will come later. Here we seek to present his personal system of theology as it has been derived from his sermons, his book of lectures, and a little from interview with him. To provide some structural arrangement for his theology, this writer has turned to an outstanding Methodist theologian, John Miley, and, with slight adaptation, has used the major divisions of his Systematic TheolOgys as poles around which to organize our material. The six major divisions we shall use are: (1) Sources of Theology; (2) Doctrine of God; (3) Doctrine of Man; (h) Doctrine of Christ; (5) Doctrine of Salvation; 21 and (6) Doctrine of Last Things. I. Sources of Theology. Through the centuries the sources of theology have chiefly been considered to be two--natural theology and revealed theOIOgy, or knowl- edge of God derived from nature and knowledge of God derived from revelation. Scholars through the years have emphasized either one or the other of these, or else have arrived at some blend of the two. By "natural theolOgy“ we "mean all things and events other than the divine revelation as distinctively such and which may, in any mode or degree, manifest God or His will or any other truth which is properly theological in its content."6 By "revealed theology" we mean that which is derived from the Judaeo-Christian Scriptures, Old and New Testaments. One's sources of theology are very important, as the sources determine in large measure the content of what is derived therefrom. Robert E. Chiles observes, "Theology's point of departure, the sources it uses, and the ultimate authority it respects are critical for the devel- opment of various doctrines and for the statement of a system as a whole. Thus to ignore this area would be to pass up one of the most sensitive guides to shifting theological currents."7 Chappell evidently has very limited confidence in 333353 as a source of theology. He says, If God has not made a revelation to us through His Book, we have no revelation. This is a wonderful world in which we live. Far be it from me to despise its multitudinous beauties. But when I ask it for knowledge about a loving and forgiving God, it gives me no answer. 6Ibid., p. 8. 7Robert E. Chiles, TheolOgical Transition in American Methodism: 1790-1935 (New York & Nashville: AbingdonflPress,-T95§), p. 28. 22 The depths saith, "It is not in me." And the stars say, "It is not in.me." And the flowers say, "It is not in me." Nature neveg forgives, and she has nothing to say to me of a God who forgives. If nature does not tell us very accurately about God, then, for Dr. Chappell, the Bible does. It is God's revelation of Himself to the human soul. The Bible will make you wise about many things if you will study it carefully, but its big purpose is this, to make you wise unto salvation. It shows you who God is, what He thinks, how He feels about you and me, how He feels about sin and how He feels about righteousness. No man can read the Bible intelligently and candidly without turning away from it with a new conception of God.9 For our speaker the Bible is held to be the word of God. He frequently refers to it by the title "the Word of God."10 He believes that the Bible is a true and dependable revelation, worthy of manls faith. He tells us in one sermon And, last of all, appreciate this Book because it is true. 'Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away.‘ we know and are sure that the first part of this sentence is altogether true. The world does pass away. Many of its greatest nations are already dead. . . . The world does not last. If you build your faith and hope upon things you are going to be disappointed, but the man who trusts God's word is not going to be disappointed. Get its promises under your feet and you will stand unhurt eff unshaken 'amidst the crash of elements and the wreck of worlds.‘ Dr. Chappell certainly believes that the Bible is a "revelation," hence inspired of God as "holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." But his view of inspiration would hardly be that of a Fundamentalist who believes that every word and part are equally inspired. He taught in his lectures to young ministers: 8 . . . . ClOV18 Chappell, The Villa e Tragedy (Baltimore: ‘Willlams & Wilkins Co., 1921), pp. lSIifgfit"‘E' 91bid., p. lh9. 10Chappell, Anointed.tg Preach, p. 118. llChappell, 352 Village Tra ed , 157. 23 Naturally I am not claiming that the Old Testament is equal to the New, nor am I urging that you believe every word of it "from cover to cover." If you take that position, you are a far better believer than Jesus. Some of it he corrected. Some of it he used. Some of it he feund the very bread of life to His soul. Some of it He used as the sword of the Spirit with which He fought His battles against the tanpter.12 His idea of inspiration of the Bible is that of a merging of the human personalities of the writers with the messages they received from God. In his book, And 223 Pro hets, he describes what he believes to have been the experience of the prophets in this matter. [Cod did not dictate] to the prophets as one would dictate to a stenographer. Their messages are both human and divine. we speak of a bee's gathering honey, but in so speaking we are not true to the facts. All the flowers in all the world have not a single drop of honey. These flowers have a kind of nectar that the bees gather. Having gathered it, they put some part of themselves into it and lo, the miracle of honey. The prephets listened to God; but, having listened, they put something of themselygs into what they heard, and we have the miracles of their messages. II. Doctrine 3f God. First, our speaker very definitely believes in the existence and reality of God. He says in one place, "But the Bible very clearly teaches the reality of a personal God."1h In a sermon from the text, "This I know that God is for me," one of our preacher's points is (as spoken of the Psalmist), "He knows that God is."15 This point of Chappell's theology we have no need to labor. To Chappell, God is a spirit being and exists in trinity--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (The doctrine of Christ will be treated separately 12Chappell, Anointed to Preach, p. 7h. 13Clovis Chappell, And the Prophets (Nashville: Abingdon-Cokes- bum, 19M)’ p. 16. 1"‘Chappell, TheV mage Tra ed , p. 110. 15Clovis Chappell, Sermons from.thg* Psalms (New York, Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1931), p. 95. 2b as Part IV of this chapter.) In harmony with orthodox doctrine, our speaker believes that this God is the creator and sustainer of the world (universe). He speaks of God, "governing the universe and creating worlds," and also "He is great enough to light suns and fashion stars, but He is also great enough to stoop to the humble task of clothing the lily."16 Furthermore, God's creation was a good creation, not marred by sin. Concerning the goodness of the first woman whom God made, Dr. Chap- pell states, She had the advantage of being well born. A wonderful creature she is as she stands before God in the morning tide of the world, 'unruf- fled by passion, unbeclouded by prejudice, unimpaired by disease.‘ Ehere is no poisoned blood in her veins. But even thi7rich boon of sing well born does not protect her from temptation. This God who has created and sustains the world also exercises a very active interest in the affairs of it, believes Dr. Chappell. He does not believe in the God of deism, Who is withdrawn from His creation and only observes its Operation. In a sermon dealing with God's care of Elijah, he declares, "God did not dry Elijah's brook, but He overruled the calamity that had come through the sin of others to the enrichment of the life of the prOphet and to the enrichment of the world. Thus our mighty God has been working through all the centuries."18 In a similar vein he states in another place, Why did God let Joseph be sold into slavery? There is but one true answer. Because he could not prevent it. God is a king, but he is 16Clovis Chappell, Sermons from Old Testament Characters (Garden City, New Ybrk: Doubleday, Daren & 65.,5I928) p. 162. 17Chappell, The Village Tragedy, p. 108. 18Chappell, Sermons from.91d Testament Characters, p. 167. 25 not a despot. If you choose to hurt somebody, God will not prevent it. But neither will he be defeated by the wrong you do. He will not allow you to get away with that choice. Better still, he will change the evil that you have done into good, providedlghe one you have wounded will only bear it within the will of God. For our speaker, God is on the throne ruling, not as a dictator, ordering all events and actions, but as a sovereign God, who though respecting the choices of men, often intervenes and redirects to pro- duce beneficial results, sometimes even out of the ashes of tragedy. Chappell is definitely not a Calvinist and predestinarian. Not only does God observe His creation and in a variety of ways intervene within it, but He has actually spoken to man and appealed to him in a variety of ways down through history. So upon this first page of human history we read these two words: "God said" . . .When man became conscious of himself God was there, wooing, loving, inviting, calling him into the path of obedience, which is the upward path. And God speaks on every page of human history. There has never been a day so dark and so voiceless that He has not made Himself heard. God spoke in the life of yesterday. He speaks in the life of today. He utters His voice in a thousaBd ways. He speaks in the great dis- asters of human history. . . . This belief in God's providence quite naturally leads into the belief that God is a God of love and compassion, a God who cares for man. From a number of statements drawn from several sermons, this writer has been impressed that this is one of Dr. Chappell's strong emphases-~that God loves and cares forvmankind, not merely'gn masse, but individually. He points this out as one of the remarkable discoveries of the Psalmist. He came to realize through his own personal experience that God loved.him individually: that he singled him out from all those that had lived, and from all those that were then living, and from all 19Chappell, The Cross before Calv , pp. 23,2h. 20Chappell, The Village Tragedy, pp. 109,110. 26 those that were yet hidden in the bosom of centuries, to bestow his personal care upon him. 'What a tremendous and transforming knowledge: Life can never be the same to one who knows in his heart and realizes in the inner deeps of his soul that God lgyes and cares, not simply for the world, but for him personally. This love and concern do not preclude disappointment. In preach- ing on the death of Lazarus, he points out that because of God's love for Mary and Martha and Lazarus, He allowed Lazarus to die. He also cites St. Paul as receiving an affliction by way of a thorn in the flesh, but from these experiences grow "the rarest and sweetest flowers."22 Chappell is always an Optimist as he observes and analyzes the dealings of God with men, believing that it is always for good, and that it springs from God's loving concern for man's best. Amidst the frequent references whiCh our speaker makes to the providences of God and to His intervenings in the affairs of men, one also finds recurringly a care on Dr. Chappell's part to assert the innocence of God of being partner in anything evil. He never blames God, and he frequently counsels people who are inclined to blame God for what may be but the reapings of their own sins or of others with whom our lives are intertwined. An excellent statement of this position is the following: God is not to be charged with this calamity. Even assuming that the drought was sent of God, it was the sin of the people that made it necessary for Him to send it. Whatever wrong, therefore, had come to Elijah through this experience, he could not justly charge that wrong to God. And what is true of the prophet is true of ourselves. Hold fast to this fact: that whatever evil has come to you, God is not the originator of it. "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"’ He shall. He does. To this solid conviction we may safely cling: God, our Father, has never inflicted one single wrong upon 21Chappell, Sermons from.thg Psalms, pp. 96,97. 22Chappell, The Village Tra ed , p. 16. 27 any human soul since the morning stars sang together.23 Chappell's theological conception of God is by no means an abstract one but a very practical one. His view of God is such that it results in the position that it is the supreme privilege of men to sub- mit to God's will and to obey Him, and that the highest service man can render upon earth is to give himself willingly into loving service of this God. For Chappell, Christian service excels all other forms of service. He states, "we can see the necessity of giving to God our best intellectually. ‘We can see how wicked it is to serve him.with only a fraction of our ability. Therefore we must look well to the cultiva- tion of our own spiritual life.“2h Following John Miley‘s schema, consideration of the Holy Spirit is subsumed under the heading of 93d. Our speaker would certainly follow the traditional view held by orthodox Christians concerning the Trinity. In Pauline language, Dr. Chappell views the body of the Christian as the temple of the Holy Spirit25 and believes that we are persons who are indwelt by a divine companion, who is elsewhere called the “Comforter." The Holy Spirit is viewed as a divine helper. Concerning this divine assistance available to ministers of the word, he writes, "Always we may have the help of the Divine Spirit,"26 and surely Chappell would not limit such assistance to preachers, but would regard this as the common privilege of all Christians. 23Chappell, Semons on 9151 Testament Characters, pp. 16h,165. 2hChappell, Anointed ta Preach, p. 117. 25113101., p. 117. 261b1do , p. 710 28 He further believes that the presence of the Holy Spirit is necessary to effectual preaching and effective churches. Concerning preaching he says, "I am convinced that to preach with the consciousness that the blessed Holy Spirit is taking the message and sealing it to the hearts of the congregation is about the most thrilling experience that any'man may know this side of the gates that are of pearl."27 Concern- ing the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church, he points to the first centuries after Pentecost and to the'wesleyan Revival of the eighteenth century as examples of the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church.28 Here again we see how one's theology will vitally affect the manner in which a.man.prea0hes and what he preaches. What he believes concerning the work of the Holy Spirit will affect his approach to preaching and where he puts his confidence for success. III. Doctrine of flag. Those who accept divine creation of the world, and especially the divine creation of man, naturally find their doctrine of God and doctrine of man highly interrelated. One is the creator, and the other is the creature; One is infinite and the other finite, with a great gulf between. This is where we find the speaker whom we are herein studying. In one of Dr. Chappell's sermons from the Psalms, he uses Psalm 8 and the text, "Thou madest him to have dominion," to offer considerable teaching about the nature of man and his origin. Concerning the Psalm- ist's claims, Chappell comments: fl; 27Ibid., pp. 88,89. 281bid., pp. u6,u7. the Dr. 29 He believes that we bear upon us the finger marks of the Infinite. He has nothing to say as to the process of man's creation. He is no more interested in processes than is the author of the book of Genesis. He is not a scientist. He is a poet and a saint. There- fOre he is in no sense concerned with the how of‘man's creation, he is only concerned with who created him. The how is a purely scientific question. It has no religious significance whatsoever. But the who is of profound importance religiously. And our Psalm~ ist has reached a satisfying answer to this fggdamental question. He believes that man is the handiwork of God. He would certainly concur in the belief that man is made in image of God. On this point he states: Man is made in God's image. He is kinfolks with God. He is God's child. He, therefore, shares somewhat in his Father's nature. He is like his Father in that he is a personality. By this we me that he has power to know, power to love, and power to choose. Though he believes man to have been made in the image of God, Chappell is also not unmindful that man is also an earthly creature. Upon this unusual combination our speaker expostulates, The Bible never blinks the fact of man's kinship to the dust. While affirming that he is a son of God, it declares with equal emphasis that he is also a son of Adam. He is, therefore, a strange mixture of the heights and of the depths, of majesty and meanness, of angel and devil, of deity and dust. He has a capacity for wallowing in the mire that is at once horrible and amazing. He has also a capa- city for fellowship with God. . . He is, theregire, a bewildering complexity, neither wholly good nor wholly bad. Probably for at least two reasons our preacher would hold to faith in the divine creation of man. First, he would believe it as his understanding of the teaching of the Bible. In addition to that ground of belief, Chappell also feels that it is more rational to hold to this view than to accept some of the other proffered theories. ‘we let 29Chappell, Sermons from.thg Psalms, pp. llh,llS. 3°Ib1d., p. 115. 31Ibid., p. 1160 30 him explain his position: I side with our poet because his position appeals to my intelligence. This is not the case because faith has no difficulties. It has, but as I see it, they are as mole hills to mountains in comparison.with the difficulties of unbelief. It may be hard to believe that man is Godamade, but it is still harder to believe that he is mudamade or chancedmade. It may be difficult to accept his significance in a universe that stretches into infinity, . . . But it is harder still to doubt his significance when.we realize that, with all his smallness, he can contemplatgzhis universe, map its solar system, and measure its planets. . . The next facet of our Doctrine of Man.pertains to his purpose and high destiny. Chappell argues effectively that divine creation gives man a significance in God's universe that he could not have if his role and position had been arrived at merely by chance. He holds that to have been assigned by God to a place of dominion in the universe is certainly more dignifying than for man to be merely the product of an evolvement. He states, . . . this great creature is made fer a high and worthy destiny. He is not here by mere chance. He is not here as the plaything of his environment. He is not here to be the bondslave of his fellows. NOr is he here to be the slave of blind force. He is here in accord- ance with the plan of God. His Creator has a purpose for him, and that purpose is dominion. He is made for mastery. He is destined fer kingship. His brow is meant for crowning. He is to be master over all the lower orders of life. He is to be master of himself.33 He believes that a non-creative view of man robs him of his Significance. In fact he calls it "belittling" to man. He is belittled by being robbed of his high origin. For many he is no longer the child of an infinitely loving Father who has made him to have dominion. He is rather "the produ t of blind forces that had no prevision of what they were creating." Another aspect of the Doctrine of Man is the matter of his free 321bid., pp. 120,121. 33Ibid., pp. 116,117. 3thid., p. 117. 31 will, a question which has been an old problem for both philosophers and theologians. Out of Reformation.times came the labels "Calvinist- ic" and "Arminian," which had as one of their major points of differ- ence the question of the human will. The question is more than purely a philosophic one, so to speak, for it radically affects one's theology and his approach to preaching. Such matters as human responsibility, accountability, and sin are in- volved here. A preacher's evangelistic approach will be molded by his understanding of a person's freedom of choice. Dr. Chappell has indicated in a taped interview that he would fit into the so-called "Arminian" school of thought, which gives special emphasis to man's freedom of choice and responsibility for his actions. He believes that for man to be a man and not a puppet, he needs to be able to choose. This must be freedom to choose the bad as well as the good. One of his best statements on this point is the following: "Why does not God stop the war?" is a question that was asked again and again in those awful days of blood and tears. He did not stop the war for the same reason that He did not prevent it. And He did not prevent it for the simple reason that He could not. God made man free. He has given him the privilege of choosing the right. He has given him the power to take the path that leads ever upward and where the light lingers forevermore. But with this there must also go the privilege of wrong choice. If man is gifted with the possibility of climbing, he must also have the possibility of descending into the depths. Therefore, there are tragic calamities occurring every day th3§ God simply cannot prevent and allow man to continue to be man. This belief in.man's ability and freedom to choose noticeably affects the content and especially the conclusions of Dr. Chappell's 35Chappell, Sermons 9_r_1_ 93.3 Testament Characters, p. 165. 32 sermons. He appeals to man to change, to make decisions, to forsake a lower life for a higher one. One of his closing appeals is this: Remember, too, that though some men are lost, no man needs to be lost. Every man can be saved if he will. This minute you can be saved if you only will be wise enough and brave enough to make a right choice, im that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out." Will you come?3 The last point in our Doctrine of Man that we include here is that of man's present moral condition. Our speaker accepts the biblical account of mankind's fall by way of Eve's transgression. We have previously noted Chappell's teaching that the first woman at the dawn of human history was a good woman, with "no poisoned blood in her veins." The fact of man's freedom of will at the same time implies the poSsibility of temptation and of falling. He says, You may resent the fact that man has to be tempted, you may blame God for it, as some do--but before you do please consider this fact, that temptation is not in itself an evil. Temptation simply means the power of choice. If man has the pSivilege of ascending he must also have the privilege of descending. Eve yielded to temptation, and in the day she sinned she lost God. As to the effect of her act and the extent of its damage on the human family, this student lacks explicit statement, but there are other statements to assist us. In his sermon on "A woman's Fall" he states, nSin'means death, not as some far-off time, but here and now. When sin enters a life death treads close upon its heels."38 Sin has a rending effect upon one's relationship to God. He continues, ". . . sin separates from.God. The day that this woman sinned she lost God."39 36Chappell, The Village Tragedy, p. 106. 37Ib1d., p. 111. 38Ibid., p. 1180 39Ibid., p. 118. 33 As to the prevalence of sin in the human world, Chappell declares, "Ours is a sick world, a sick society. This is the case because we are sick individually." And a little further, nOur sickness is a reality. It is a sickness born of sin. Sin separates from God the source of all health and 11m."ho He believes that sin has a fettering effect upon mankind-~that man is not free to forsake or ignore it at will. "We are still the slaves of things, of our own ambitions and appetites, of our lusts.and passions. ‘We are the slaves of sin, for 'he that committeth sin is the bondslave of sin.‘ And this is the most galling of bondages."hl To summarize Chappell's views concerning Man, he believes that Man is a created being by virtue of divine creation; that he was made in the image of God and yet at the same time has an earthy nature, as a creature of the dust. Man was made for a high destiny, being made for dominion over creation. ‘Man is endowed.with freedom of will, and by wrong exercise thereof he experienced separation from.God. As a result mankind is sick and stands in need of divine grace and healing. IV. Doctrine of. §_h£i_s_t. Crucial in any system of Christian theolOgy is the view upheld concerning Jesus Christ, for Christianity is more than theism--it is the faith and doctrine of Jesus Christ. ‘Without Him one may have religion, but not Christianity. Chappell stands in the mainstream of orthodox Christianity in hOChappell, The Cross before Calv , p. 58. h1Chappell, Sermons from.ihg Psalms, p. 122. 31: his beliefs about Christ. He believes that Christ'is of eternal existence, hence had eternal existence somewhere before His birth on earth. He says, "Our Lord's life did not begin at his birth. He had been from the beginning,")"2 and proceeds to quote from the prologue of John's Gospel, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." As to the deity of Christ, he speaks of Him when hanging upon 113 the cross as "the dying Son of God." He identifies Jesus with God in saying, "Jesus on the cross is God on the cross. 'God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself."'m" The Son of God, Chappell believes, actually entered this world, and that by way of a human body. On this thought he says, "The Word became flesh. Jesus is one with us. 'Wherefore in all things it be- hooved him to be made like unto his brethren."'hS He indicates that Christ had a truly human body when he states, "there was the period when he was with us in the flesh, when he spoke through human lips, when he ministered through human hands, when he walked on human feet."’46 Concerning the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we find a very clear affirmation of Chappell's faith. I believe in the resurrection of Jesus for many reasons. I think as a historic fact it is one of the best proven in human history. There are so many evidences for the Resurrection, evidences that for me at MChappell, 11333 _c_:_ro_s§_ 3133113 Caivfl, p. 10. hBChappell, Sermons 221‘} the 322132.59 p. 117. “933.. p. 51. 115 _I_lgigu p. 52. MClovis Chappell, Meet These 11122 (New York & Nashville: Abing- don Press, 1956), p. 89. 35 least are unshakable. But the supreme eflidence is to know Jesus himself as a personal Savior and friend. As to the work of Christ that He came to do, our'speaker would put in the forefront the work of redemption. "The part that our Lord was chosen to fulfill was none other than the redemption of the world by his death on the Cross.""‘8 More about the work of redemption will ap- pear in the section on the Doctrine of Salvation. As a result of this redemption.He becomes the giver of eternal life. Chappell speaks of "this mighty Christ who flings open the door of the Life Eternal to us."h9 He views eternal life as a gift, graciously granted to man through Jesus Christ. V. Doctrine of Salvation. The Doctrine of Salvation is commonly expressed as "Soteriology." The tenm as commonly used in Christian theology refers to the ground or basis for man's salvation and the practical workings of this truth in men's lives. This subject matter quite naturally divides itself into the provision for man's salvation, and secondly his experiencing of it-- the division.which we shall use here. Clovis Chappell is a firm believer in the teaching that the death of Christ upon the cross is the ground of man's pardon and salvation. He asserts, "Complete provision has already been made for your needs. When Jesus said on the Cross, 'It is finished,‘ He meant that a full and perfect “me” p. 91. “Chappell, _1113 Cross before Calv , p. 9. hgchappell, The Village Tragedy, p. 22. 36 and adequate salvation had been provided for all the needs of all the world."50 In another place he says, "The prophet says, 'He made himself an offering for sin.‘ Here is the Good Shepherd laying down his life for the sheep. . . . He suffered to make us whole. It is by his wounds that we have been healed."51 This atonement is believed to be substitutionary in nature-~one taking the place of another. A passage which brings this out quite clearly is found in Chappell's sermon, "A Cry From The Cross." Finally this agony of bewilderment and perplexity on the part of our Lord is the natural outcome of his identification with us in our sin. He is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. There on the cross he is being wounded for our transgres- sions and bruised for our iniquities. Therngor love's sake he who knew no sin is being made to be sin for us. For our speaker, redemption was not alone something that had been provided as a resource, but it was also something to be experienced in the human life by way of pardon and deliverance from sin. He believes that there was something provided in Christ's redemption that could work a work of grace and change in the human heart. On his point he appeals thus: Has a moral drought got you in its torturing grip? We offer you the ‘Water of Life. Has sin taken its foul fingers and tarnished you and made you unclean? ‘We offer you One who is able to save unto the uttermost. He can so wash you that you shall be whiter than snow. He can give you the peace ghat passeth all understanding. He can satisfy the longing soul.S In another location he offers similar teaching. "There are no stains that He cannot wash away. However dark may be some of the pages _i‘ 5061-11;,ppell, Sermons 92 _O_J£ Testament Characters, p. 58. 51 52Chappell, Senmons from.th2_Psalms, p. 53. Chappell, The Cross before Calvasy, p. 57. 53Chappell, Familiar Failures, p. 89. ..,I I-0' 'r. 37 that you.have written into your life's story, remember this: 'The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin.”Sh This salvation in its working out in human experience is not an educational or acculturating process, or series of resolutions, but an evangelical conversion wrought of God. Dr. Chappell teaches: Now just as one may be born from.beneath, even so he may be born from above. This new birth is a necessity if one is to see the Kingdom.of God. A spiritual birth is just as necessary in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven as a physical birth in order to enter this world. Therefore no amount of culture, no amount of decency, no amount of devotion, no amount of morality, nothing can take the place of the new birth. It is our greatest privilege. Sgut it is far more than a privilege; it is an absolute necessity. Hence on the side of Christ, salvation is something that has been provided for in the atonement, and on the side of man it is something to experience in a changed heart and life. VI. Doctrine 2; Last M. "Eschatology" is the theological term used to gather together those teachings concerning "last things." It embraces such matters as the end of the world, the return of Christ, millennial questions, resur- rection and immortality, and eternal destinies, such as heaven and hell. From an investigation of several dozen of Chappell's sermons from several different books of his published at different stages of his ministry, this writer observes an absence of teaching on how the world wdll end, infrequent mention of the Lord's return, and.very little that might be interpreted as "millennial." 'While these things which are ShChappell, Sermons an Old Testament Characters, p. Sh. SSClovis Chappell, Questions Jesus Asked (New York & Nashville: Abingdoanokesbury Press, 1958), p. 15I. 38 emphasized by some "evangelical" preachers have found little place in Dr. Chappell's preaching, he does have much to say concerning man's resurrection and immortality, and matters of heaven and hell. This is worth noting in a man's preaching, for a speaker holding such beliefs will obviously not alone exhort men to live better lives here and now, but will urge them to keep future existence and eternal destinies in mind as well. First, we shall examine his belief concerning man's resurrection and immortality. Two of his sermons, "The Village Tragedy" (on the raising of Lazarus), and "A Glimpse of the After Life," have considerable teaching on this theme. He accepts future life as a fact. Speaking of Mary and.Martha, Dr. Chappell says, "There came to these, as there comes to ourselves today, a new and satisfying assurance of the reality of the after life. Christ lets us know here, first of all, that the after life n 56 is a present fact. In the second sermon.mentioned above we read, "He [Christ] tells us very clearly and unmistakably that the dead are still alive, that the man who has passed into the unseen is not asleep. He is consciously and vividly alive."S7 He believes that in this future life our identity and individual- ity will survive. Then Christ not only teaches us that the after life is a present fact, but He teaches us also the survival of individuality in that after life. 'When.He stands by the grave to raise Lazarus from the dead, He does not call him by some new name. He called him by the name by which He had known him in this life. . . . Elijah is still Elijah as he comes on the Mount of Transfiguration, though he has been dead 56cmappell, _T_h_g Village Tragedy, p. 19. 571mm, pp. 98,99. 39 for centuries. And Moses is still Moses.58 This existence, our speaker believes, will not be a dreamy or unconscious one but characterized by true consciousness. In commenting upon Jesus' word to the dying robber, Chappell deduces this thought, "They'were going to be consciously alive and conscious of each other. So Death is not a sleep. All men are consciously alive beyond the . grave."59 Finally, on this thought of immortality, it is our speaker's conviction that man's future existence is a permanent state. So the conclusion of the whole matter is this: Forever you are going to live. Forever you are going to be yourself. Yen are going to have to keep house with yourself for all eternity. Forever you are going to remember. Forever you are going to enjoy or gaffer the destiny that you make for yourself while in this life. Chappell believes in the two future destinies that orthodox Christianity has taught through the centuries, namely, heaven and hell. He speaks of those who have left their earthly homes and have gone "into that other Home not made with hands. . . . And one day God will give them back to us with our old loves cleansed and purified in the Land of Eternal Gladness."61 Further, he believes it to be the teaching of the Bible that all ‘men will not share the same destiny. And, last of all, Christ makes it plain to us in this story that all men are not going to have the same destiny in the world unseen. He teaches us that there is going to be a separation there betwggn the good and the bad, between the Christlike and the Christless. SBChaPPOIl, me Village TriggdyL Be 20 o 59Ib1d o p p O 99 0 60Ibid., p. 105. 61Ibid., p. 22. 62 Ibid., p. 102. “u. o . : . rev.- ho Chappell was certainly not a "hell fire" preacher, though he certainly believed in a place of eternal punishment. One only occasion- ally finds clear reference to this. He speaks of memory as helping to intensify the joys of Heaven and that it will also help to embitter the pangs of hell.63‘ In.preaching from the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, he alludes to the locus of the rich man in the future world. He says, "Dives, on the other hand, was a place of conscious pain. While Lazarus was comforted Dives was tormented."61l Doctrines such as those of universalism and of purgatory would have no place in Chappell's theology. In this regard he states, "There is a tremendously great tendency to believe that death will work a moral change, that you can lie down one moment self-centered, sin-conquered, g0d1ess--and by the mere act of dying, wake up the next moment holy, sinless and Christlike. It is absolutely false. If Christ does not save you in the here and now, do not expect death to accomplish what He 65 was unable to accomplish." Summary we have surveyed what we believe to be the major points of Clovis Chappell's theological system. He certainly falls into the main~ stream of orthodoxy, and within that stream he would be an Arminian rather than a Calvinist as to the operation of God's grace and the exercise of man's will. He prefers to use the term "evangelical" in describing his position rather than either "conservative" or "liberal." 63Ibid., p. 102. 6thido’ p. 1050 6 SIbid., pp. 101,102. hl He did say in a taped interview, "I would hardly classify myself as a "conservative," but I am more of one than I am a liberal."66 If he might permit one to use the term "conservative," this writer would consider Dr. Chappell to be quite typical of what we might call a "conservative Methodist" position. Chappell believes the Bible to be God's revelation and the chief source for theology. He believes that it should be the basis for, and sourcebook of, the Christian preacher's message. He is a Bible preacher and ever goes to that Book to substantiate his proclama- tion. Almost every sermon without exception is Bible-based. He says, "I always take a text." From this sourcebook, he strongly believes in a real and personal God who takes an active interest in.His world. His view of God is an Optimistic one, a God who loves mankind, who cares for their welfare, who seeks to save them, and whose works are unsullied by any taint of evil. He is ever cautious to present God as "holy in all His works." Man is held to be God's highest creation, made in.the image of God, made originally good, from which state he fell by the exercise of his own free will. Man is dignified by the fact that he is God-made rather than chanceemade, and has been assigned a place of dominion in the world. Christ is believed to be the divine Son of God, who came in human fleSh into this world. He came to reveal the Father, and pre-eminently to perform the work of redemption for man through His death on the cross and his literal resurrection. _— 66Taped Interview, April 1h, 1970. See Appendix III. h2 Salvation is not the accomplishment of man, but is the gift of God to man through Jesus Christ, who was substituted for him in the atonement. This provision has a power to obtain both pardon and life change for all who fill choose by faith to receive the benefits of it. Chappell believes strongly in the "life to come" for all man- kind, that man is immortal and will go on living somewhere, according to the choices he has made in this life. Because of this faith he again and again calls men to decision, to act upon what is freely being offered them in Jesus Christ. CHAPTER III THE CHURCH OF CLOVIS CHAPPELL Introduction The term "Church" is variously applied, depending on the context. It is used here to refer to a denomination in the sense that denominations are usually understood, a designated group composed of those of similar faith and who give their allegiance to a particular organization. Clovis G. Chappell is very definitely associated with a particular denominationp-the Methodist Episc0pal Church, South, which in the later years of his ministry became part of The Methodist Church. He was cradled in.the Methodist Episc0pal Church, attended its services, entered its ministry, and served all of his pastorates in the southern section of that church. This does not mean to suggest at all that he was narrow in his viewpoint, but only that he was a loyal son of his denomination. Therefore, it is important that we should look at the church in which he pastored for more than forty years, and in which he hasoften ministered in the more than twenty years since his retirement. Beginnings of Methodism in England The beginnings of the Methodist Church are well known. It arose out Of a revival movement in eighteenth century England, led by John and Char- les Wesley and George Whitefield. The Wesley brothers in their days at Oxford.had organized a "Holy Clubn for the devout students, which group came to be dubbed "Methodists" because of the systematic routine which 113 they followed .1 Methodism has been called a marvel by Neely, a.Methodist scholar, who cites three factors which have made it a wonderful success. The facts stand out very distinctly. First, its high educational beginning; second, its thorough organization; and third, its exceed— ingly practical methods. Methodism had its beginning in Britain's best university. The earliest leaders were university graduates. However, these early leaders had something besides education and method. John wesley had an unusual spiritual experience in a little church on Aldersgate Street on.May 2h, 1738, which "strangely warmed" his heart and started a fire which was to change deistic, worldly, eighteenth century England, and was to be carried to the American colonies and greatly affect this nation of ours. It is worthy of note that "Methodism did not begin as a church. It did not become a separate church in Great Britain until after'Wesley's death. Not until his latest years did he contemplate its becoming a separate church."3 It remained a movement within the Church of England, in.which Jehn and Charles wesley, and George Whitefield were ordained clergymen. However, in the American branch of the movement a separate organization was formed within'Wesley's lifetime. we now turn to the western side of the Atlantic. Its Implantation in America Several older Protestant churches preceded the Methodists to Amer- 1Vergilius Fenm (ed.), Thg_hmerican Church 23 the Protestant ESEEEEEE. (New York: PhilosOphical Library, I9§§5, p._§Ih. 2"Thomas B. Neely, Doctrinal Standards 3f Methodism (New York: Fleming H. Revell Company, I918), p. 62. 3Halford E. Luccock, Endless Line of. lendor (Chicago: The AdVEance for Christ and His Church, I9§C$, p. . hS ican soil, primarily because of their longer existence. The Methodist movement was introduced to the American colonies almost simultaneously at two different locations. Robert Strawbridge, a Methodist immigrant from Ireland settled in Frederick County, Maryland, in 1766, and opened his cabin for meetings. In 1768 a little chapel was started in New York, on what is now John Street, New York City. From these two beachheads started the Methodist movement in America, which soon spread to the other colonies--New England, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Tennessee. Although some annual conferences had been held previous to the organization of an American denomination, the independent organization itself was not set up until 17811. In the prededing years the movement had grown until Sweet reports 114,998 members in 17814.1‘ On December 21;, 178b,, the famous Christmas Conference was convened in Baltimore, Maryland, at which time the Methodist Episcopal Church was founded. The conference convened under the authority and direction of John Wesley, who had appointed Dr. Coke and Francis Asbury as joint superintendents for America. Thus the Methodist Episcopal Church in America was the first distinct Methodist organization anywhere. Early growth was more in the South than in the North. In 1781;, according to Sweet, "The largest proportion of membership was still south of Mason and Dixon's line, there being but eleven per cent north 01' that line and eighty-nine per cent south of it."5 Growth during the next few years was even more rapid in the southern colonies. ‘— l‘Wflliam Warren Sweet, Methodism in American History (New York 8: Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1961), p. 99. gIbido, P0 990 h6 Agitation and schism in the Methodist Episcopal Church American Methodism came into contact with slavery from its begin- ning. This was inevitable from its quite rapid spread in the southern colonies. The founding conference in 178k had taken a strong stand, adopting a rule prohibiting ''the buying or selling the bodies and souls 6 Sub- of men, women, or children with the intention of enslaving them." sequent conferences found this rule too rigid, there being already some slaveholders among the membership; and complications were also coming by way of civil legislation, which at times made it difficult or impos- sible to emancipate slaves at will. Hence there began a recessive move- ment to more moderate positions. This moderation prevailed until 1816, when a church act known as the "Compromise Law" was passed, making any slaveholder ineligible to any church office if he lived in a state where emancipation was possible. In the 1830's, with the appearance of anti-slavery societies and the abolitionist agitation, it was impossible for the churches to escape the issue. Sweet reports, This rabid anti—slavery movement found many supporters among Northern church people, and slavery by the latter eighteen thirties had be- come the issue of chief importance in the churches. Methodist Con- ferences in the North and other religious bodies began to pass anti- slavery resolutions, and Methodist anti-slavery societies and Method- ist anti-slavery papers soon.made their appearance. As a result "the bitter Nerthern attacks upon slavery brought out PrO-slaveny defenders in the South, and Southern.ministers were not long __‘ 6Cross Alexander, American Church History, Vol. XI, (New Yerk: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1955), p. 3. 7Sweet, 22. 23:90, pp. 236,237. h? in finding arguments, based upon the Scriptures, which confirmed their pro--slaveryposition."8 The General Conference of 1836 went on record as being I'decidedly'opposed to modern abolitionism, and wholly disclaim any right, wish or intention to interfere in the civil and political re- lation between.master and slave as it exists in the slaveholding States of this Uhion."9 Perhaps to the surprise of some persons today, the Methodist Church in the South was integrated on a denominational basis before the Civil war, although probably not on a local church basis. There were Negro preachers and Negro members in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Sweet reports, "The Church South, h0wever,up to the time of the Civil war confined its missionary work principally to the slave population. From.the beginning of Methodism in America Negroes had been admitted into church membership."lO In 1858 (after the division in the church) there were 188,036 colored members in the Methodist Church, South. Very little detail can be included here concerning developments which precipitated division, and more detail is probably not pertinent to our study, but needless to say, division did come about in the church. .A "Plan of Separation" was adopted in the General Conference of 18hb, jproviding for dividing the church. The southern leaderShip, acting on this plan, called a convention for Louisville, Kentucky, in May, 18h5, at which gathering of delegates from the southern and southwestern con- ferences, it was voted to separate the southern portion of the church from A 81bido, p. 2370 9Alexander, 22. 233-0, p. 100 IOSweet, 22. 220, p. 2720 h8 the jurisdiction of the General Conference. As a result the first General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, met in Petersburg, Virginia, in.May, 18h6. Thus was formed the denominational organization in which Clovis Chappell was to minister for about thirty of his forty years, the last ten being in the re-united church. How- ever, he appeared on the scene many years after the division and the Civil war, at a time when the issues which earlier had seemed to be crucial had now subsided in their importance. In fact Dr. Chappell ministered through some of the decades when efforts toward unification were becoming stronger, and his last ten years of pastoring were in the re-united Methodist Church. This cleavage into the northern and southern segments did not result in any important differences of doctrine or practice, although there were some varying emphases. Robert Chiles in his discussion'of the theological transition in the Methodist Church observes In 18hh, as civil tensions in America mounted, the Methodist Epis- copal Church divided north and south. Theological conversations and exchanges between the two branches continued, however, and no ll marked theological differences are to be traced to the separation. After the Civil war a rather notable change took place by way of the formation of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, a name chosen by themselves. The General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in.1866 directed that "if the colored membership desired it, the biShops, if and when their godly judgment approved, should organize them 1min: an independent ecclesiastical body."12 In the interval between 1866 \ 11Robert E. Chiles, Theological Transition in American Methodism (New York 8: Nashville: Abingdon Press, I965), p. 119-.- 12Alexander, 32. 233., p. 91. h9 and 1870, several Annual Conferences of colored preachers were formed, the colored preachers and members indicating "a very general and earnest desire. . . for an independent church organization."13 As a result the new church was formed in December, 1870, two colored bishops were or- dained, and church preperty held fer the use of the colored church was turned over to the authorities of the new church. Though the Methodist EpiSCOpal Church, South, suffered considera- ble losses during and as the result of the civil conflict, they experi- enced quite marked growth in the decades following the Civil war. .The historian Sweet reports, "In the years immediately following the Civil war the ChurCh South was visited by a general religious awakening, and 'a sound of revival was heard from one border to the other.”111 In 1892 the church reported a membership of 1,305,715, third in the nation behind the Baptists and the northern Methodists. An unusual feature of the work of Methodism in the South in the decades after the Civil war was the presence of both northern and southern churches in many communities. The northern church followed an aggressive Policy in the South in the years immediately following the Civil war. In fact, during the Civil war they had taken over some churches following Union occupation; and after the war they started others, until the Methodist Episcopal Church, North, had formed ten new Annual Conferences inthe South by'1869.15 Further, many Negroes were attracted to these churches, for it was only natural that they should be suspicious of the ‘ 13Ibid., p. 91. 1l‘Sweet, 92. gi§., p. 3b2. 151mm, p. 308. 50 Church of their former masters, and the northern church capitalized on this. Also both groups carried on church extension in the west; and some communities had both northern and southern.Methodist churches, at times across the street from each other. Even into the early twentieth century, "on both sides loyalty to the ecclesiastical body was kept uppermost, often strongly influenced by ecclesiastical administrators and ecclesiastical beneficence."l6 Let us briefly note some of the notable features of the Method- ist Episcopal Church, South. We find that they did not take a back seat in education, but started Vanderbilt University and many other schools and colleges across the South, which produced many of their leaders. It is probably safe to say that they were as strong in education as was the northern church. A high degree of internal unity in the southern church has been noted by Professor Alexander, one of the southern theological leaders: "She has been singularly free from dissensions or disturbances within. . A.more homogeneous ecclesiastical community does not exist on the Ameri- can continent."17 Among other distinctives which this same writer points out are: 1) a studious effort to keep aloof from all entanglements with, or in- terferences in, political matters; 2) an emphasis upon the man, believing that the way to make a good state is to make good citizens, and the way tO‘moke good citizens is to make good men by holding up to them God's k 16---, The Histo of American.Methodism (New Ybrk & Nashville: Abingdon Press,-19 9 PP- 1111:7537— 17A1exander, 220 93:20, P. 1380 51 eternal law and gospel of grace; and 3) in the 1890's he viewed them as 18 over-cautious toward federation, quite content to refrain from fusion. Methodist Doctrine There seem to be some misunderstanding and discussion over whether or not John.Wesley and the Methodist Church were concerned about doctrine. Some of this stems from a minimal doctrinal standard for church memberShip. Umphrey'Lee states that one of the inheritances of Methodists "is that the Methodist church to which we belong has no creedal requirement for its members."19 Neely records that in'Wesley's General Rules it is said: "There is only one condition previously required of those who desire admission into these Societies-~a desire to flee from the wrath to come, and to be saved from their sins."20 Though only minimal doctrinal requirements were required of its members, this does not imply that doctrine was not important nor preached nor taught in Methodist societies. John Wesley was very pronounced on doctrine himself and made requirements of his preachers, the early stand- ards being his N223 11393 Lbs N3! Testament and the four volumes of his Standard Senmons. ‘Wesley himself provided twentybfour of the twenty— five Articles of Religion, which became the doctrinal standard for the American church. Concerning these Articles of Religion for the American Methodists, Chiles tells us He also prepared an abridgment of the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Anglican Church, which he sent to America along with a revised 181bid., pp. 138,1u1. 19umphreyLee, 933 Fathers E29.E§ (Dallas: Southern.Methodist Ikfiversity Press, 1958), p. 5. 201168137, 22. 93-10, p0 9S. 52 Sunday Service and other orders from.the Book B: Common Prayer. ‘With one article added on the "rulers of the United States," the Christmas Conference of l78h adopted the Twenty-Five Articles of Religion as a basic statement of doctrine for the Methodist Episcopal Church in Americgland accepted the other doctrinal standards wesley had pro- posed. Wesley was very definitely Arminian, and through him the Method- ists inherited the tradition of Arminian theology. Arminius was a Dutch theologian who became a critic of Calvin and stressed man's free will and held to conditional predestination.22 ‘Wesley abhorred the doctrine of predestination and stressed the free grace of God awaiting the accep- tance of man's will. It is in this stream that we find Clovis Gillham Chappell, a great believer in man's responsibility and in his freedom to choose salvation in Christ. It was over the issue of Calvinism, which was held by Whitefield, that brought wesley and Whitefield to a parting of’the ways; and the views of wesley have prevailed in the church. Throughout the years, a doctrine that has often been associated with Methodism and at times been the object of controversy and even of schism, has been that which goes by such labels as “holiness," "sancti- fication," "Christian perfection," and other terms. This was an emphasis on "heart religion" and by seasons the doctrine came to the fore in some are as 9 Beginning about 1880 and continuing until the close of the century and beyond, the so-called "holiness" question agitated the Methodist Episcopal and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and other churches of the Methodist family. In the two decades previous to the Civil‘War'Wesley's doctrine of Christian perfection was largely neglected and had become little more 21Chiles, pp. 333., p. 2t. 221166, 22. 22-2., p. 660 53 than a creedal matter among the main.Methodist bodies.23 It had become a serious enough issue to merit treatment in the BishOps address at the General Conference of the Church South in 1892. In part they said There has sprung up among us a party with holiness as a watChword; they have holiness associations, holiness meetings, holiness preaCh- ers, holiness evangelists, and holiness property. Religious experi- ence is represented as if it consists of only two steps, the first step out of condemnation into peace and the next step into Christian perfection. . . . We do not question the sincerity and zeal of their brethren; we desire the church to profit by their earnest preaching and godly example; but we deplore their teaching and methods in so far as they claim a monopoly of the experience, practice, and advocacy of holinesfih and separate themselves from the body of ministers and disciples. Clovis Chappell was already a boy of twelve years when these bishops identified this issue. This writer inquired of Dr. Chappell con- cerning his views in this matter, and he reports, "Justification and sanctification are practically the same. If you get justified, you're on your way to sanctification.“2S Evidently Chappell did not isolate and emphasize the teaching of holiness as some factions in his church did. Because of this issue some schisms took place; and we find such churches as the Free Methodist Church being formed in New York state, and the Church of the Nazarene arising particularly in the South. The Church of the Nazarene "had stemmed from Methodism, was built on Methodist umdels, and stressed the Methodist doctrines of conversion and holiness."26 A doctrinal emphasis stressed by these newer churches and some other evangelical churches, which found.little articulation in the Methodist —_._. 23Sweet, 32. 333., p. 3&1. 2thid., p. 3u3. 25See Taped Interview, Appendix.III. 26smet, 220 flit-o, p0 hobo Sh churches of the twentieth century, is that of millennialism. This teaching appealed to the economically depressed who were looking for a better world without sin and poverty, at the return of the Lord. But Sweet reports, "Such doctrines were rarely heard from Methodist pulpits, for they had no appeal to upper and middle class people, such as the Methodists had now become."27 We have already observed that we find little reference to the Second Coming of Christ in Chappell's semons. Though likely he believed it, it was not emphasized in his preaching. Taking within the scape of our attention at the moment the period of 1865 to 1950, the theological positions of Methodism were undergoing some changes. After the Civil War science made its challenge, particu- larly the views expressed by Darwin and the evolutionists, and these received the attention of some Methodists. Also biblical interpretation was affected as conclusions of Strauss, Wellhausen, and other German scholars were brought back to America.28 Hence theology made some adapta- tions, and there was a swing toward liberalism in the schools and semin- aries. In the early twentieth century the conservative wing brought Progressive theology under heavy fire. However, conservatism was worn down; and liberalism largely prevailed. Thus conservative apologetics brought all religious, ph11030phical, and scientific developments under attack. However, the liberal reconstruction of Methodist theology successfully pursued its course. The surveys of modern Methodist theology by Schilling and McCutcheon impressively document the extent to which Methodism was dominated by liberalism in the first third of the twentieth century. In general character and spirit, this theology had much more in common with the theology Syrrent in other denominations than it did with its own heritage. 27 286111193, 220 92:20, P0 51. Ibid., p. hos. 290hiles, 920 £20, PP. 71,720 55 Robert Chiles has surveyed for u330 what he believes to be the theological shift in American Methodism from 1790 to 1935. He believes that the major transitions have occurred in three basic doctrines of 31 Wesleyan theology: revelation, sin, and grace. The first transition was “from revelation to reason," as thought moved away from wesley's conception of Scriptural, experimental religion, through the stage of attempting to authenticate Scripture, over to reason, natural theology, and philosophical demonstration. The second major transition was that of "from sinful man to moral man." The "guilt of original sin was placed in doubt," and the blessings previously "attributed to prevenient grace were gradually incorporated into man's created nature, depreciating his estrangement and helplessness apart from God."32 The third area of major change in MethOdist theology, according to Chiles, was "from free grace to free will," wherein thought moved from salvation as solely in the free grace of God toward the idea of man's increased ability, and the questioning of the atonement as being indispen- sable. Hence the evaluation of this student of Methodist theology is that there has been a definite shift away from the tenets of John wesley on some basic doctrines. As to the relationship of Clovis Chappell to this recent theology, he prefers to call himself an "evangelical" and not a "liberal." One 30Robert Chiles' Theolo cal Transition in.American Methodism: 1790-1935 is the result 0 a oc r lthesis done-because flThe more I learned of‘wesley‘s thought, the more heightened seemed the contrast be- tween)it and the Methodist theology of’my acquaintance (see Introduction, P. 170 Bllbid., p. 186. 32Ibido, pe 1860 56 contributing factor, no doubt, is that he was not schooled in any seminary, but studied theology via the Course of Study. Further, a study of the theology in his sermons reveals him to be closer to the older position of the Methodist Church than to the newer one. Moral Reform and Social Concern The Methodist Church through the years has been noted for the standards it has raised in a great variety of moral and social issues. It has been a very practical religion, seeking to make a difference in men's lives and in society. The Methodist Episc0pal Church, South appears to be less aggressive in this area than the northern branCh. Nevertheless, we find the General Conference of the former speaking out in 1886 on two of the most vital moral issues of the day. The first of these was the subject of temperance and prehibition. The paper adopted spoke of strong drink as "the enemy of the church, the source of crime, the cause of poverty and suffering, wretchedness and death."33 Their resolution called for the church to speak out in strong language and fer stronger action in favor of total removal of this great evil. The other action referred to dealt with the subject of divorce. It resolved "that no minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, knowingly, upon due inquiry, shall solemnize the marriage of any person who has a divorced wife or husband still living."311 Both of these afore- mentioned positions'have been liberalized in the years since. 33Alexander, op, 313., p. 110. 3thid., p. 111. 57 The General Conference of four years later (1890) unanimously adopted a resolution explicitly condemning "theater-going, dancing, card- playing, and the like, as contrary to the spirit of Christianity."35 This was the position of Chappell's church in the days when.he was growing up (born.1882). Another Shift that has taken place in the Methodist churches over the last several decades is one from concern about individual salva- tion to concern for society; from concern about the future world to more concern about this present world. "As the conception of religion broad- ened, many saw that there needed to be a change in the concept of salva- tion. . . Not only must individual sins be forgiven, but something must be done about the sins of society."36 Thus on the one hand there were many who believed that "conversion will cure all ills; that if everybody were converted, this would solve the social and all other problems,"37 and on the other hand were those who felt that this alone would not solve society's problems, that a direct approach needed to be taken to these. Thus a reaction against an extreme individualistic approach gained.momentum; and we find Method- ists reading the works of washington Gladden, Rauschenbusch, and others, and Methodist writers coming to echo their sentiments.38 Methodist Polity One of the unchanging characteristics of Methodism down through the years has been its view of church government. It is episcOpal in ‘ 35Ib1d., p. 112. 36smet, 22. EEO, p0 3570 37Ibide, p. 3570 38ij-do’ p0 3570 58 nature as opposed to congregational government. This was, of course, taken over from the government of the Church of England. Wesley himself exercised a strong centralized government, sending preachers to their charges. It is reported of wesley that "he believed in apostolical succession and that men must be episcopally ordained if they were right- fully to administer the sacraments."39 Part and parcel of the episc0pal system in the Methodist Church is the concept of the itinerancy. Under the itinerant plan, many preachers by choice give themselves to the ministry of the church, to serve under the direction of the bishOp or superintendent, and to go to the appoint- ment given without question. Historians feel that this system was wonderb fully suited to pioneer church work and contributed much to the growth of Methodism in America. Sweet states, "The itinerant system was admirably suited to the spreading of the gospel in a new country. The Methodist system was highly centralized, with the power of sending the circuit riders to their circuits wholly in the hands of the superintendents."ho The ministry was composed of local preachers and itinerant preachers. The fbrmer were those who felt they could not accept open assignments, but remained in one location and usually were not in official charge of a church. The itinerants were assigned preaching appointments, usually a circuit of churches, perhaps comprising a whole county or more in some cases. It would often take the itinerant preacher weeks for him to cover his churches once, before starting around again. Professor Alexander indicates that the itinerant system was 39Le hOSweet, pp. 933., p. 11m. 9, 220 22:20, P0 860 59 followed very faithfully in the southern branch of Methodism. The agitation of certain questions of church polity or economy, which so seriously disturbs the peace of some other churches, has not invaded the Southern Methodist fold. The tendency to Congregation- alism, of which so much has been written in Methodist journals of late, if in reality it exists at all, exists to a very small extent in Southern Methodism. The preachers go where they are sent, even to the barren missions of the remote rural districts, and there are many noble and touching examples of EEG ancient heroism of the Method- ist itinerancy throughout the South. It was under this type of ministerial system that Dr. Chappell served. In one of his sermons he reports a keen disappointment in an assignment which he one time received. When I was quite a young preacher, I was transferred to a certain conference to become a pastor of a desirable city church. Arrived at the seat of the conference, I heard much talk about the desper- ate plight of the church at B. The pastor of the church had gone wrong, and had had to quit the ministry and memberShip of the church. As a result the congregation, taking sides for and against, was torn into fragments. Everywhere I turned I heard the preachers saying one to another, "I certainly pity the man who goes to B. May the Lord help himl" I listened to it all with considerable indifference. At least I had no personal interest. I was sure that I already knew where I was going. 'When the hour came for'the bishop to read the appointments I calmly sat down to find out where all the other brethren were going. But in less than five minutes, I had been read out, not to my'cityLShurch, but to the church at B. I was absolutely stunned. . . In decades gone by, it was felt by the Methodists that preachers should not remain a very long time in one appointment, which policy pre- eluded long pastorates, and very likely contributed to a number of change of scenes in Dr. Chappell's ministry. Unification 'Hithin the span of Clovis Chappell's active ministry and within the memory of many of us, the major branches of American Methodism MAJ-mar, 9.2. 92-20, p0 1390 uzClovis Chappell, Sermons from Revelation (Nashville: Abingdon- Cokesbury Press, 19h3). PP- 89:90- 60 experienced a unification, which was accomplished in 1939. This merged the Methodist Episcopal Church, North; the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; and the Methodist Protestant Church into "The Methodist Church." We have previously reviewed briefly the fracture of the Method- ist Episcopal Church into the northern and southern branches, which officially came to pass in 181:5. Earlier, in 1830, a group had separated because of "the obnoxious feature . . . which gave to the itinerant ministers the entire exercise of the legislative and judicial powers of the church, to the exclusion of all other classes of ministers, as well as the whole membership of the body."h3’m‘ Our main concern here is to note briefly the movement of Chap- pell's church into the new Methodist body. The first public overtures, manifesting a modicum of brotherhood and goodwill, came about in l87h. In the year 187).; there occurred an event of signal importance for American Methodism. Three members of the Methodist EpiscOpal Church appeared at the General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, meeting in Louisville, Kentucky. They came as the first fraternal delegates from the Northern Church to the Southern Church follovdnfisthe unfortunate bisection of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 18%. 1&3 ---- Illustrated Book of all Religions (Chicago: Star Pub- ’ - _ lishing Company, neae), 1303210 M‘In their revolt against the control of the church by the it- inerant ministry, "The Methodist Protestant group insisted on the right of a layman to vote on any question in any church meeting and the admini- stration of the church without bishops. 'Having no traditional prejudices in favor of a divine right monarchy or a divine right hierarchy,‘ they said, they took for their model 'the church without a bishop and the state without a king.’ By insistence upon these two principles the Methodist Protestants sought to bring church government, as they said, into harmony with the Republic and to make it conform to the principles of the 'Kingdom of God.” --Paul H. Douglass, "Methodism," Encyclo- Edia Americana, 1951, Vol. XVIII, p. 723. ’45 ----, _Thg History _o_f. American Methodism, Vol. III, p. 1:07. 61 The gesture of fraternal delegates was returned two years later when southern representatives visited the northern General Conference. The sending of such delegates continued at succeeding General Conferences and did much to ease tensions and page the way for merger considerations. In 1876 a joint commission met at Cape May, New Jersey, and in their work accorded mutual recognition to each other's church as a legithmate branch of Episcopal Methodism in the United States, and worked out some adjustments concerning controversial claims regarding certain church property. The General Conferences of the two Methodist Episcopal churches, meeting in 189k and 1896 authorized a Commission on the Federation of Methodism. Its first meeting was in‘waShington, D.C. in 1898, and resulted in recommendations of cooperation in such matters as joint administration of publishing interests in China and Japan, greater comity in.mission work in fereign lands, and cooperation in the prepara- tion of a common catechism, a common.hymn book, and a common order of public worship.h6 A succession of events starting in 1908 resulted in the inviting of the Methodist Protestant Church to Share in talks looking toward organic union. The invitation was warmly accepted; and as a result of subsequent actions taken, the Joint Commission on Unification came about. A nmhber of developments took place in the next few years, yet progress seemed slow to some. The process of preparing an acceptable constitu- tion for the new church was a laborious one, with the first two proposed constitutions being rejected by some group in the necessary process of #GIbid., p. #13 62 ratification. Eventually a satisfactory constitution was arrived at, and the new church emerged, to be known as "The Methodist Church.” The uniting Conference of the three churches was held in Kansas City, Missouri, April 26éMay'10, 1939.h7 Thus the last ten years of Dr. Chappell's ministry were spent in the larger Methodist body, of which he had now become a part. He retired from.the active pastorate in l9h9. Dr. Chappell, as we noted in the beginning of this chapter, was associated from.beginning to end.with the Methodist Church. In a denom- ination of this magnitude, as might be expected, there is considerable latitude in doctrines emphasized, moral positions held, and some worship practices. Our speaker would be more typical of'the conservative and of'the continuum, and more representative of the Methodist Church of some decades ago, a product of the church of the early years of this century. Chappell, still living,h8 is a great churchmen, who believes in the Christian Church and in the Methodist Church. Today his church still marches on, a united body, found in nearly all the cities and towns and at many of the cross-roads of America. l”maid" p. 457. haAs of April 30, 1970. He is now into his eighty-ninth year. GiAPTER IV The Social and Ecclesiastical Climate of Chappell's Time If one might ask why a chapter of this nature should be included in a rhetorical analysis, we would justify it on the grounds that public speaking cannot be divorced from the social context in which it partici- pates. "Oratory functions within the framework of public affairs, and the criticism of it must be soundly based upon a full and penetrating understanding of the meaning of the events from which it issues. Rhet- oric and history, age-old partners, cannot be divorced."1 Thus one of the principles of speech criticism is that the speaking be considered against the background of the times and circum- stances which produced it. While an exhaustive background of such data would be impossible of attaining, nevertheless it is usually possible to provide patterns of social forces in existence and identify phenomena that were simultaneously present and possibly relevant to the speaking occasion. Our progress in chapters two, three, and four has been that of movement outward in concentric circles. In chapter two we were still concerned with the speaker'himself; in chapter three the circle was en- larged to embrace his denomination; and now we view Chappell's larger world in terms of social and ecclesiastical phenomena which were present or transpiring during the years of“his preparation for the ministry and the decades of the practice of it. 1Lester Thonssen and A. Craig Baird, Speech Criticism (New York: The Ronald Press Company, p. 315. 63 6h At the outset it is advantageous to establish the scope intended to be covered here. Chappell's college years, his brief time of school- teaching experience, and his more than forty years of pastoral ministry fit very closely into the first half of the twentieth century. He entered college in 1902 and retired from the active ministry in l9h9. Therefore the first half of the present century deserves our scrutiny. Naturally volumes have been written on these fifty years; and because some of the material is less relevant than other material, some selectivity had to be exercised. We shall pass over many items of political note, such as presidents, and such major events as two world Wars and the Great Depression, per se, except as some ecclesiastical and moral matters relate to these events or are influenced by them. We have selected what we believe to be major happenings in the social world which have quite obvious moral issues or implications, and occur- rences in.the church world at large. For the most part our ecclesiasti- cal considerations will be American in their viewpoint, and usually those of Protestantism, believing that these impinge more directly on our speaker and serve more adequately to provide an understanding of him. Conditions at the Dawn of the Twentieth Century As the new century dawned, the SpaniSh-American war had just been concluded. A decade of revolts of various sorts had also just been con- cluded. Industrialism in the decades since the Civil war had been moving rapidly ahead, creating new problems. Link describes this so- called "progressive era“ this way: The years from 1897 to 1920 were a golden period of American develop- ment. They were usually prosperous years, marked by solid progress in living standards for all classes. They were, moreover, hopeful 65 years. Americans, confident that they had the ability to set aright the social and economic injustices inherited from the nine- teenth century, launched in the early 1900's a virtual crusade on levels of government to revitalize democracy, bring economic in- stitutions under public control, and 1" an answer to the twin evils of special privilege and poverty. Link speaks of morality and righteousness becoming the keynotes of politics, and many of the evils of the day "were bound to fall before the reformer's trumpet blast."3 The theological picture at the turn of the century is reported to be sterile and stereotyped."‘ There seemed to be a blend of optimism and contentedness, of expecting a better world near at hand. The most representative American theological books issued at the dawn of the century asstme that progress is inevitable. They re- flect little anxiety about the future of Christianity. Representa- tive thinkers confidently heped that by evolutionary processes the Giristian movement was destined to attain universal spiritual ascendance in a peaceful world. . . . The eschatological note was almost entirely lacking. This complacency was bolstered by th 0- logical views minimizing the sinfulness of human nature. . . . In terms of church organizations, each denomination was still pretty well going its independent way. Here and there there were inter-church projects, but little attempt at union. "There had not at that time been any union of denominations in America for years and none seems to have been under discussion."6 _¥ . 2Arthur 8. Link, American E%ch: A History of the United States Since the 1890's (New for : re . Knopf, 3rd Edition, 1963), p. 17. 3Ibid. [‘William w. Sweet, The Stag: of Religion in America (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1950), pm 0 — _ 5 Arnold S. Nash (ed.), Protestant Tho ht in the Twentieth Century (New York: The MacMillan Company, (5:759. 6 Ibid. 66 Gains Glenn Atkins singles out four problem areas confronting the church world in this new period. The nineteenth Christian century bequeathed to twentieth century Christianity four distinct tasks: the adaptation of its inherited faith to the conclusions of science; critical history and the new psychology; the examination and re-interpretation of its sacred books; the discovery of a changed appeal, the Christian recasting of society, Any one of these was challenging enough to demand the whole ferce and intelligence of Christianity and the long coopera- tion of time. The four of them--with all their implications-Ahave 7 proved a task beyond the power of a single generation to accomplish. Social Change, 1900-1950 The twentieth century has been one of tremendous social change. Some of the changes seem to be moving in one direction, like a chain lead- ing on to others, while some phenomena have been of the variety that rises and fades, experiencing the swing of the pendulum. we new single out a series of specific trends or events, which have affected the church and its work. Urbanization. The extensive urbanization of American life during the period.here under consideration'has drastically affected the patterns of the lives of the American people, and the work of the churches. In 1890 about one-third of the American people lived in cities or urban areas. By 1950 about five out of six dwelled in the city setting. By 1960, a little beyond the scope of our study, the majority of the United States population (about 53%) lived in larger centers of 50,000 or more or in their immediately surrounding areas. This movement was not all an exodus from.the farms, for large-scale immigration of persons from southern and eastern Europe took place in the early twentieth century, many of whom located in the cities. r 7Geius Glenn Atkins, Religion in;gu£ Times (New York: Round Table Press, Inc., 1932), p. #6. 67 What affect did this urbanization have? This movement coupled with the use of the automobile caused elimination of many small rural churches and consolidation of others.8 However, this growth of the cities did not prove a deterrent to church growth. Between the reli- gious censuses of 1916 and 1936, churches grew faster than the popula- tion, "from a total of h1,927,000 to $5,807,000, or by 33 per cent, during a time when the population increased by 27 per cent.9 With the multiplying of cities there came also the increase in the size of churches and also changes in their ways of doing things. Churches became larger and more beautiful, and concomitantly the manner of service was accomodated to these more aesthetic surroundings. Sweet reports "More beautiful and costly churches were built during the ten 10 years after 1920 than at any time in our history." This grander archi- tecture and interiors influenced the manner of service conducted therein. These new stately church buildings arising in every section of the country, but especially in the cities and larger towns had a decided influence upon.the conduct of worship. Generally speaking, the in- teriors of these new church edifices were planned for a more formal service, while the sanctuaries were more worshipful than the type of the former generations. Pulpit gowns and choir robes came into common use, together with a more dignified type of church music. As a natural consequence of robing the choir, lending it a larger dignity, the processional and recessional naturally followed, as did also music responses and chorals. Along with urbanization and enlarged facilities there developed what some call the "institutional" church. By this term is indicated 8Link, 3p. 2:93., p. 293. 9Ibid. 10‘ Street, pp. £12., p. 1.13. nIbid.’ p. (41140 68 something other than a preaching service on Sunday, and an operation con- ducted by one man (the pastor). Many churches now became service organi- zations, with a manybfaceted program, utilizing a paid staff. There appeared assistant ministers, paid musicians, parish visitors, secretar- ies, and other workers. There were men's clubs, dramatic and literary societies, a benevolent program for the needy, a training program for youth, with girls being taught basket weaving, cooking, sewing.12 The cleric in.many cases takes on a new image. He becomes less isolated, a man among men, who attends the civic clubs, belongs to other good organizations, and is familiar with the finer things of art, litera- ture, and music.13 Pacifism. With the close of the Spanish-American war, the Ameri- can Christian people were observed as becoming increasingly internation- ally'---:minded,1’4 and generally there was a strong foreign missionary inter- est. Along with this charpened international consciousness there came a wide-spread concern about peace in the world. In the early years of the new century Andrew Carnegie began to devote a part of his great fortune to the promotion of world peace, and the most prominent leaders in both church and state were enlisted in the great cause. . . . In 1909 the Peace Society doubled its membership, and throughout the country ministers were more outspoken on the question of peace than at any other time. . . . It was now completely respectable to condemn war as barbaric, and to advocate peace as an enduring ideal, and many good peOple all over the land came to bl ieve that "humanity was finally nearing the goal of universal peace." However, when.World war I broke upon us, paradoxical as it may seem, ‘ministers lined up in support of the cause. Joseph Fort Newton said, "The 12Atkins, 220 21-20, Pp. 711,750 131b1d0, P0 790 u‘Sweet, 220 2220, p0 391 lsIbide, p. 3990 69 war is religious," and Frank Mason North spoke of it as "the war for righteousness."l6 man this war was over, the spirit of pacificism immediately revived and was international in scope. From the year 1920 to the Opening of World War II a powerful peace crusade was sweeping the English-speaking world. Almost at once many of the outstanding religious leaders put on sackcloth and ashes and repented their part in World War I , and vowed never again would they have any part in any war. Harry Enerson Fosdick led the procession of the penitents. The pacifist movement was strong in all universities and col- leges in the country, particularly in the denominational schools. "Also feeding the pacifist movement among students was the stress placed upon the futility of war in the teaching of modern European history."18 Withzthe coming of the Draft Act in 1939, the pacifism viewpoint caused many to be conscientious objectors. The Federal Council of Churches created a committee on conscientious objectors vhich was responsible for securing a change in the draft bill. This change would give recognition to all conscientious objectors, not only those of the well-known historical pacifist bodies, such as the Quakers, Mennonites, and Dunkers, bf; 388° those who were members of any well-recognized denominations. ’ However, than the unprovoked attack of the Japanese on Pearl Harbor, on December 7, 19141, came, the course of events transformed many into willing participants. Many adopted the Christian interventionist point of view of which Reinhold Neiebuhr was a spokesman. He stated, "War 16Ib1d., p. 1.00. 17Ibid., p. 1.28. lerido, p. 11290 19William Warren Sweet, Methodism in American Histo (New York 8: Nashville: Abingdon Press, ReVisIon of 1953), p. El . 20Sweet reports (p.h15) that numerous polls were taken in all churches between 1939 and 191:1 which revealed the fact that there were probably more pacifists among the Methodists than in any other of the so- called non-pacifist churches. 70 is basically sinful, and we stand in need of repentance for participating in it, yet, relatively speaking, in this particular conflict one side is right and the other wrong."21 The American government recognized a responsibility in providing fer the spiritual needs of all faiths in the armed forces. Chaplaincy was provided for in the armed forces on a ratio basis. Training schools for chaplains were set up, with an interdenominational staff of instructors. In 19hl Congress appropriated $12,816,880 for the building of 60h chapels in.army posts, camps, and other locations of American troops. These chapels were designed to serve all faiths, with reversible altars and other adaptations.22 This cooperation of Christians of most denominations in the war effort, when pressed by their government, does not detract from their pacifistic feelings. There was throughout the decades of our century a strong feeling of pacifism. .§2.§EE§.§EEE‘ Probably one of the surprising developments of the 1920's was the re-emergence of the Ku Klux Klan. It had been active in the days of reconstruction after the Civil war and had pretty well died out, until it was reorganized by William Simmons in the autumn of 1915, in.Georgia. It neared extinction in 1919, but "two expert organizers, Edward Y. Clarke and Mrs. Elizabeth Tyler, rescued the Klan from ob- livion early in 1920. . . . Recognizing the rich financial opportunity at hand, Clarke and Mrs. Tyler increased the initiation fee to $10.00 211mm, p. the. 22$weet, 313 Story 33 Religion 22 America, pp. lab, 1:35. 71 and established an imperial promotion department.”23 Using door-to-door solicitation and other methods, the Klan gained 100,000 new members in 1920, and it spread through the country in the next few years. Link reports that the membership was drawn largely from lower- middle-class old American stock, chiefly in small towns and cities, who were intensely suspicious of anything foreign.2h The group excluded Catholics, Jews, Negroes, and most aliens. Outside of the South the Klan's chief appeal was its anti-Catholicism. The Klan typifies the spirit of intolerance which became prominent in the 1920's, when United States also experienced the great "red scare" showing itself in an intense fear of communism. Rbbert Meats Miller in his chapter in The History 2f_American Methodism, mentions that there have been some scholars who have associated Methodist laymen and clergy with the hooded "patriots," as "working hand 25 6 in glove." He says, "The assumption is not without a certain validity,"2 and then carefully proceeds step by step to show how this was neither the position nor spirit of the Methodist Church, North or South. He states that both churches officially condemned the organization, and many of their publications denounced it as "dangerous," "vicious," and "evil."27 Prohibition. Another notable phenomenon of our century was that of prohibition. In the last third of the nineteenth century and the first two decades of the twentieth century there was a strong reform movement abroad in our nation, and one of the prominent segments of this movement 2a 23Link, op. cit., p. 30}. Ibid.. pp. 303,30t. 25 ----, TQEDHistogy 2; American Methodism, p. 355. 25Ibid. 271m. 72 was that of temperance and prohibition. The National Temperance Society and the U. C. T. U. had earlier been formed, but with the appearing of the Anti-Saloon League, the movement intensified. The Anti-Saloon League was formed at Oberlin, Ohio in 1895, marking the beginning of the most formidable attack upon the liquor interests which the country had yet witnessed. Refusing to ally itself with any political party, it supported those candidates in state and nation which stood for the "dry" program. During the period of its greatest effectiveness it was generally admitted that "there were no shrewder politicians in America than the veteran leaders of the Anti-Saloon League." By 1907 a great wave of "dry" legislation began in the country, which by 1918 Bad resulted in the passage of prohibition laws in thirty-three states. By 1918 over three fourths of the people lived either in dry states or counties. Link believes that prohibition was definitely not the product of sudden impulse or wartime hysteria, but that this probably afforded the additional momentum to put it over the top on a national basis.29 Another linkage that seems to be valid is that the social gospel emphasis which was enlarging during the same period would naturally have some affinity for the temperance cause. Miller reports of the prohibition years, that "with the exception of the Protestant Episcopal, all the churches which had been permeated by the social gospel were also officially committed to prohibition."30 The same writer, writing from a Methodist bias, represents that large body (all Methodists) as being a great force in attaining prohibi- tion. They were like an army marching in this cause. Soon distillery executives were mournfully warning one another to 'realize that the entire Methodist Church is a solidified, active, 28.E’oweet, 2.113 Story of Religion in America, p. 411. 29m, 22. £2.30, 1). 3050 30 ---, The.flisto£y g£_American Methodism, p. 332. 73 aggressive and obedient unit in this warfare on our trade,‘ and a report to the 1908 Northern General Conference could state matter-3 - factly: "The Methodist EpiscOpal Church is a temperance society." All of this agitation of decades culminated in the passage by Congress on December 18, 1917, of what is known as the Volstead Act, which submitted to the states the Eighteenth Amendment. ”It prohibited, one year after ratification, the manufacture, sale, or transportation of alcoholic beverages in the united States."32 Thirty-six of the then forty—eight states had ratified it within about one year, the thirty- sixth coming on January 16, 1919. Prohibition went into effect one year later, in January 1920, but most of the country had already been dry since the summer of 1917.33 No doubt there were evasions of the state laws which preceded national prohibition, but now enforcement became a national matter. The law seemed to "have much going for it" by way of an almost united country behind it, but compliance was far from complete and enforcement was not easy. Erasion of the law began immediately, however, and strenuous and sincere opposition to it--especially in the large cities of the North and East--quickly gathered force. The results were the bootlegger, the speakeasy, and a spirit of deliberate revolt which in many com- munities made drinking "the thing to do." Enforcement of the law was an enormous task. The politically dry majority in Congress did support the statute by making appropriations for enforcement and tightening enforcement laws. 311mm, pp. 329,330. Bax-link, 22. SEE-to, Po 306e 33Ibldo 34 Frederick Lewis Allen, Only Yesterday (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1957). Po 99. 74 EVen so, such provisions were hopelessly inadequate without the full support. of local officials and public opinion. There were only 1,520 agents in the Prohibition Bureau in 1920 and 2,856 ten years later. As a consequence, enforcement was spasmodic, largely ineffective in areas where public opinion was hostile to the Eighteenth Amendment, and often violent and corru t because of the bad character and strong- arm methods of many agents. 5 During the time of prohibition, because of the many miscarriages of enforcement and a number of unwanted social developments, a number of church members were won over to the side of repeal. "Mr. John D. Rocke- feller, Jr.'s position is typical of that of a great many churchmen. After many years of liberal support of the Anti-Saloon League and of the dry cause, he finally came out Openly in favor of repeal."36 ’Naturally the alcoholic beverage interests did not fade away during prohibition, and their partisans were found in the press, on plat- forms, and among members of Congress. William Sweet reports that the Temperance Boards of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, were the objects of the most vicious attacks both on the part of the "wet" press and the so-called liberal congressmen.37 The campaign for repeal reached its climax in the presidential campaign of 1932, when the Democratic presidential candidate, Franklin D. Roosevelt, came out for repeal. While repeal would probably have come regardless of the party elected, it fell to the Congress of 1933 to vote for repeal. while some had thought prohibition a failure in the days when it was in force, there were at least a few who in the days of repeal thought that 35m, 910 Cite, p. %e 36Sweet, gig Story g_f_'_ Religion in America, pp. 411,412. 37Ibide' p. ‘’12. 75 repeal in turn was a failure. Jehn Haynes Holmes in a series of articles in.ng Christian.ggg£g£y on the first three anniversaries of repeal attempted an appraisal of the situation. He concluded that repeal had been a failure. In the first place the ills of prohibition are still with us; second, the saloon came back with only its name changed to tavern. Contrary to "wet" promises, drinking had not diminished but had3§reatly increased, while the roll of traffic deaths steadily mounted. Harry Emerson Fbsdick had some similar thoughts which he divulged in a widely quoted sermon. He said that repeal of prohibition did not solve our problem. It simply took us back to the status ggg_before pro- hibition and made a worse situation than our fathers had faced two genera- tions earlier. He noted that the tipsy, cocktail-party generation cannot be the last word in the story of alcoholism.39 Hence the story of before, during, and after prohibition, the rum- running, the bootlegging, and the winking at enforcement make up one of the most important social sagas of our time. Technological 9353535, One of the characteristics of the twentieth century is the swift change that regularly comes about through the introduc- tion of life-changing devices. Not counting the more recent phenomenon of television, which had not greatly affected American life by 1950, the three that appear to have left the greatest impression upon our national life in the first half of our century are the automobile, the radio, and the motion picture. Concerning the automobile, Arthur Link reports two students of sociology describing its effect thus: "It is probable that no invention 381bid. 391mm, pp. #12,!»13. 76 of such far reaching importance was ever diffused with such rapidity or so quickly exerted influences that ramified through the national culture, transforming habits of thought and language."l'o The industry emerged as the largest single manufacturing industry in the United States, and as such is probably the most major factor in the American economy. It also greatly stimulates the allied industries of steel, petroleum, rubber, road-building, and others. In its ramifications it affected America's social life, her moral life, and certainly her churchpgoing patterns. It affected the home, the parent-teenager relationship, the behavior and habits of youth and ad. infinitum. Frederick Lewis Allen in Only Yesterday cites a few of the changes that came about. Meanwhile a new sort of freedom was being made possible by the enor- nous increase in the use of the automobile, and particularly of the closed car. . . . The automobile offered an almost universally available means of escaping temporarily from the supervision of parents and chaperons, or from the influence of neighborhood opinion. Boys and girls now thought nothing, as the Lynda pointed out in Middletown, of jumping into a car and driving off at a moment's notice. . . to a dance in another town twenty miles away, where they were strangers and enjoyed a freedom impossible among their neighbors. The closed car, moreover, was in effect a room protected from the weather which could be occupied at any time of the day or night and could be moved at will into a darkened byway or a country land. 1 The radio occupied a little less important seat on the bandwagon of the twenties than did the automobile, yet it made an auspicious appearance. There was no radio broadcasting until the fall of 1920, but the new industry experienced a skyrocketing. In 1922 radio sales were $60,000,000, and in 1929, seven years later, the sales were 88h2,548,000, or an increase of l,h00 per cent. “Link, 220 fie, p. 262e #1 Allen, 220 21;" p. 100. 7? When we consider its effects, we need to note its wide dissemination of information, often from a live setting, such as reporting the vote tallying at a political convention, giving blow-by-blow accounts of boxing matches, and broadcasting presidential speeches. Of course along with this was an opportunity for churches to broadcast their services and for preach- ers to herald their messages over the air waves. In this area one could select from a wide range, from Charles E. Fuller of "The Old Fashioned Revival Hour" to Charles E. Coughlin, radio priest of Reyal Oak, Michigan. The third great invention was the motion picture. It matured during the years between 1915 and 193O.h2 Its "artistic possibilities were first demonstrated by David H. Griffith's 'The Birth of a Nation,' produced in 1915, "1’3 a land mark in motiondpicture history. Soon the movie houses were drawing millions to their doors every day and every night, thus changing drastically America's entertainment habits. The content of the films was evidently heavily weighted in the direction of the sensational. Frederick Lewis Allen comments on the dominating theme and the alluring advertisements: "The movies . . . played incessantly upon the same lucrative theme. The producers of one picture advertised "brilliant men, beautiful jazz babies, champagne baths, midnight revels, petting parties in the purple dawn. . . .#h As a result of this over-riding theme, "a storm of criticism from church organizations led the motion-picture producers, early in the decade, to install Hill H. Hays, President Harding's Pestmaster-General, as their ”Link. pp. 933., p. 290. h31bid. “Allen, 22. 21-30, p0 1810 78 arbiter of morals and of taste.“5 Until the onset of television the movie industry experienced a flourishing business and left its mark on its generation. ‘Mgggl_Relaxation. By this term we refer to the relaxing of the moral code. As our century progressed, a rather marked turn in the practice of personal freedoms took place after World war I. Personal behavior was more conforming and more carefully regulated before that time, but a period of new freedom and moral relaxation followed. Link describes the period between the Armistice and the second World War as being in a kind of ferment and revolt: "It was a ferment of a different kind, marked by changes in moral standards, the rise of new faiths among intellectuals, and the flowering of a literary revolt against the polite tradition in letters."l'6 He continues, "The postwar rebellion was first evidenced by a revolt among young people, especially among 'flaming youth' on college and university campuses, against the rules governing sexual relations."“7 Allen speaks of the pro-war code in these ways: Women were the guardians of morality; young girls must look forward in innocence to a romantic love match which would lead them to the altar; smoking and drinking in many areas of the country were held as morally wrong; dresses should be of conservative length, etc."’8 It seems that the regulations were more on the women and girls than on the men and boys. He adds, "The war had not long been over when cries of alarm from parents, teachers, and moral preceptors began to rend the air. For the boys and girls just “Shirk. p. 102. hélink, 2B. 23-2., p. 272. #7Ibide, p. 2730 “Allen. 220 212.. pp. 88,89. 79 growing out of adolescence were making mincemeat of this code."l+9 Link concludes that if there was any single striking social phe- nomenon of the twenties and thirties, it was the popular obsession with sex.50 Petting, promiscuity, and drinking among college students became quite fashionable; and even high school students engaged in many of the new freedoms. The subject of sex became an open thing. Some aspects of it were now discussed across the dinner table. The theme pervaded many of the novels, plays, and motion pictures. Thus the new freedom affected all areas-not just conduct, but literature, pictures, and conversation. This relaxed atmosphere did not by any means exist only in this single above-mentioned area, but literary taste in what was acceptable language in magazines and books was altered. What was considered by some standards to be strong language was not allowed in earlier years, but came to pass the censor real easily a decade later. Terms like "damn" and "bastard" were formerly forbidden words in magazines of good taste, but later came to be passed by magazines of unblemished standing.51 Womanhood. Quite closely related to the theme of moral relaxation and yet in some points different is the status of womanhood. This area of life also has undergone a great change in the decades of the first half of this century. At the turn of the century the woman's place was supposedly in the home; few married women were gainfully employed, because their careers were with their families. In the previous century there had been a campaign for various women's rights, and several notable women speakers had taken to the platform h91hid., p. 89. SOLink, 3p. 35., p. 273. 51mm, 92. 33;" p. 11h. 80 Among the more famous were Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton carrying the torch for woman suffrage. Along with these two was Lucretia Mott, campaigning for legal rights more than for the vote. One of the more important aspects in the change of status for women was the granting of political equality. The nineteenth amendment, granting nation-wide suffrage to women, was passed by Congress in June, 1919, and was proclaimed in effect in August, 1920, having been ratified by three-fourths of the states. This also gave them the right to hold office, "and the twenties and thirties saw women not only voting but also holding offices high and low."52 Women, although at times charging dis- crimination against their sex by employers, nevertheless found increased employment Opportunities after 1920. By 1940 l#,l60,000 were gainfully employed in this country, constituting 25 per cent of the labor force.53 Frederick Lewis Allen also gives a good overview of some of the economic and social changes coming about in womanhood. With their greater accessibility to jobs there "came a feeling of comparative economic inde- pendence. With the feeling of economic independence came a slackening of husbandly and parental authority."54 Single women were more ready to leave the shelter of home and take apartments of their own. One of the most conspicuous signs of what was taking place was the immense change in the dress and appearance of women. Skirt length rose from a low of six or seven inches above the ankle to knee length in the later 1920's. Silk and rayon stockings and underwear supplanted cotton. "Not content with the freedom of short and skimpy clothes, women 521311111, 22. Eli's-o, pm 27". 53Ibid. 5" Allen, 220 flog Po 98o 81 sought, too, the freedom of short hair.”55 Also the cosmetic industry experienced highly increased sales as women took more and more to rouge and lipstick. Another "indication of the revolution in manners which her headlong pursuit of freedom brought about was her rapid acceptance of the cigarette. Within a very few years millions of American women of all ages followed the lead of the flappers of 1920 and took up smoking."56 0f far greater social significance, how- ever, was the fact that men and women were drinking together"57 at cock- tail parties, clubs, and speakeasies. Obviously many of these changes had implications for the work and ministry of the church as the guardian of morals, the defender of the home, and the building of an honorable manhood and womanhood. Capitalism and Socialism. For many decades covering both the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century there were those, both in and out of the church, who felt that there was entirely too much gap between the rich and poor, between industry and employees, between capital and labor. There were efforts at labor reform in the early years of the period we are considering here, but in a rather dramatic way the Great Depression brought it home to some that there was something wrong with our economic system (at least it was so charm). In the Episcopal Address before the General Conference of 1932, meeting in the midst of the depression, the bishops of the Methodist Episco- pal Chmrch (North) charged: 551mm, p. 105. 561mm. p. 109. 57Ibid., p. 110. 82 It cannot be denied that the industrial practices of past decades have given us the deplorable conditions of today. Industry has as a rule given labor a drudging, insufficient wage, keeping it down by child exploitation, by suppression of legitimate organizations, and by other expedients, while at the same time huge fortunes have been amassed for the favored owners of the resources of production. To-day the burden is without conscience shifted to the worker, who, after giving his labor for giserable financial results, is turned off to starve or beg. . . .5 Thus we find a keener disenchantment with capitalism as the hope of society; and many ministers, laymen, and educators moved toward the view that "a socialist society must nearly accorded with the kingdom of God."59 Many of these persons joined a host of crusading movements ad- vocating the socialist cause. "According to Kirby Page's poll of 100,h99 clergymen in 193#, 3k per cent of the Methodists who responded (including a host of leaders) named socialism as the most preferred system for America. H Race Relations. Race has continually been a social and moral problem for America since slavery was introduced into the American colonies. Though that institution has passed, we nevertheless have the permanent problem of living side by side in peace and harmony. In our century we find a meeting of significance taking place at Niagara Falls, Canada, in June, 1905, when a small group of Negro intel- lectuals led by William E. B. DuBois, met and adopted a platform demanding political and economic equality for the black race.61 These "Niagara rebels" received scant attention at first, until an anti-Negro riot in Springfield, Illinois, in 1908 awoke many citizens to latent dangers. 58Sweet, Methodism in American Histo , p. 362. 59 ----, Thg_Histogy‘gf'American Methodism, p. 405. 6oIbid. élLink. 22. 22-2.. P. 31. 83 Influenced by these events, "the young Negro rebels and a distinguished group of white educators, clergymen, editors, and social workers met in New York City on Lincoln's birthday in 1909 and organized the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People."62 This organization has continued to be active and influential ever since. However many of the progressive and socially-minded were not yet won to the cause of improved race relations. It is one of the supreme ironies of American history that the Populist-Progressive era--an age which saw every other cancerous social growth undergo surgery--coincided with the crest of the wave of racism. In fact, many progressive reformers, including leaders of the social gospel, were either indiggerent to the Negro's plight or actually hostile to his aspirations. "Immediately following the Armistice," according to Robert Meats Miller, "race riots and lynchings swept the land."64 Fierce riots occur- red in border and northern cities, and deep tensions troubled the country. Also contributing to aggravated race relations was the revival of the Ku Klux Klan in the twenties, previously discussed. In the Methodist General Conferences of 1908, 1912, and 1916 that church (the Northern) took its stand for equal rights and complete justice for all men in all stations of life, and recognized that "the white man's prejudice is the colored man's burden."65 Some persons feel that the depression which descended upon both black and white, had a beneficial effect in bringing the races closer together, "and by the end of the 30's the nation was on the edge of the 621bid., p. 32. 63 albide. p. 365. 65Ibid., p. 3630 Ibid., p. 360. 2 8# major breakthrough in race relations that came in the 1940's and 1950's."66 The progress of the past two decades passes beyond the province of this Studyo67 The Ecclesiastical World, 1900-1950 We have tried to make a distinction between matters more obviously social in nature and those ecclesiastical, although a certain measure of overlapping is inherent in the content. In this section we include sub- jects of a theological and organizational nature-those affecting the thought, growth, and inter-church relationships. The Social Gospel. In the latter half of the nineteenth century there arose a trend of thought in the churches which emphasized society rather than the individual, which emphasis came to a flowering in the twentieth century. These men were in reaction against the individualistic gospel that had been presented by the more orthodox and fundamentalist groups. Social Gospel advocates insisted that it is not enough to preach a gospel that is simply fire insurance to save a man from Hell. There is no use saving individuals one by one when a corrupt social system is damning them by the thousands. The Social Gospel sees that man lives in a society and, to a great degree, is molded by hgg society. If the society is corrupt it will inevitably corrupt man. Among the forerunners in this new religious emphasis were Washing- ton Gladden, a Congregational minister in Columbus, Ohio; Josiah Strong, a Congregational minister in Cincinnati; Francis G. Peabody of Harvard; and Walter Rauschenbusch of Rochester Theological Seminary. 661bide, Pb 365. 67This thesis was written in 1970, but covering to 1950. 68William E. Hordern, A.La 's Guide 22 Protestant Theology (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1 , p. 85. 85 "An important factor in the development of the social conception of religion was the discovery and reinterpretation of the social teachings 69 The office of of the Bible, especially of the prophets and of Jesus." the prophets as forthtellers came to be viewed as more prominent than their role as foretellers. They stood before their day and demanded social reforms. And secondly Jesus' teaching concerning the Kingdom of God came to have new meaning to these reformers. They became convinced "that by the 'Kingdom of God' Jesus had meant neither an after life nor a society upon earth which was to be set up by a supernatural act of God . . ." but ". . . a society in which men are brothers, living in cooperation, love and justice together."7O Gaius Glenn Atkins feels that Gladden and Rauschenbusch deserve a place apart and above the others. Gladden published a succession of volumes in the late 1800's which had a strong influence. His life task was to "socialize the individual," and "the next article in his creed after the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man was the transform- ing power of Christian goodwill."71 He championed the rights of labor to organize and rejected the laissez-faire philosophy of the orthodox politi- cal economist. He believed that churches could and should supply the moral force to modify the economic process. Walter Rauschenbusch through "Christianizing the Social Order, 1912, and the Theology g£_the Social Gas 1, 1917, probably did more than 69Sweet, Methodism ig.American Histo , p. 358. 7oHordern, 92. 553;. , p. 85. 71Atkins, Religion 3.3 gp_r_ Times, p. 51. 86 any other single man to carry the social gospel message over to the 72 church as a whole." He sought to recast theology and thus provide a theological support for the Social Gospel. For the liberal and the social gospeller, ethics holds the central place. For them the acid test of religion is not so much what a man believes as what he does. There was the tendency of some to dis- parage theology, feeling that the time spent in theological debate could be more profitably spent in making the world a better place in which to live.73 The Social Gospel became the message of liberalism; and with the spread of liberalism into dominance in many of the churches since World War I, this message has supplanted the evangelical gospel in many pulpits and churches. The Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy: Much of importance to this chapter seemed to happen in the 1920's. During those years the struggle of fundamentalism with modernism became front page news in the secular press as well as with the religious news media. Toward an understanding of these two terms, The term "fundamentalist" seems to have been used first by Dr. C. C. Laws, editor of the Baptist WatchmanéExaminer. It implied that this view expressed the fundamentals of the Christian faith, the irreduci- ble minimum of belief without which one could not be Christian.“ This basic minimum of faith has been sometimes popularized as fundamentalism's five points; the inspiration and inerrancy of the Scrip- tures, the virgin birth of Christ, His atoning death for sin, His physical 7észeet, 1h; Stogy g_f_ Religi on i}; America, p. 356. 73H0rd0m, 22. 21.309 p. 81.0 7% ‘ Ibide. PP. 52953. 87 resurrection, and the second coming of Christ.75 The modernist position may be stated as the "use of the methods of modern science to find, state and use the permanent and central values of inherited orthodoxy in meeting the needs of a modern world.76 William Sweet dates the Fundamentalist movement from the year 1910, "with the publication of a series of little books entitled The Fundamentals: §_Testimogy 32.293.222223 which professed to set forth the five fundamental Christian truths."77 Two wealthy laymen supplied the money whereby more than 2,500,000 copies of this twelve-volume series of booklets were publish- ed and scattered broadcast to ministers of all Protestant denominations, evangelists, missionaries, theological professors, religious editors, and other religious leaders.78 Fueling the controversy in dramatic fashion was the famous sermon by Harry Emerson Fbsdick, in June of 1922, entitled, "Shall the Fundamental- ists Win?" He was then guest minister of New York's First Presbyterian Church. This embroiled him in controversy with the General Assembly of that church, and the struggle became headline news across the country. In due time he tendered his resignation from that church and became pastor of Park Avenue Baptist Church, which became the famed Riverside Church. This theological struggle infected many of the larger churches, and especially prominent and deep was the cleavage in the Presbyterian Church. J. Gresham Hachen, a professor at Princeton Theological Seminary, emerged as perhaps the ablest exponent of the fundamentalist position. 75Sweet, _T_h_e_ Stag 9_f_ Religion in America, p. W. 761bid. 77Ibid. 78Sweet, Methodism ig'American Histo , p. 392. 88 In 1929 he and his allies failed in their opposition to a reorganization of Princeton Seminary, and as a result he resigned and helped to found Heat-duster Seminary in Philadelphia. Other denominations did not escape unscathed, for the Baptists, Methodists, and Disciples of Christ had both factions clamoring for con- trol. In many of the major denominations and seminaries liberalism carried the day, and by the 1930's it dominated the teaching of many churches. The Evolutionist Controversy. Very closely related to the previous consideration, but yet sufficiently different to merit separate treatment, is the question of evolution. This struggle symbolized the conflict be- tween science and religion. Liberalism for some years had accepted the theory of evolution; hence had sought to make an accommodation of religion to Darwinism. The teaching of evolution was strongly repugnant to conservative and fundamental Christians because it was allied with scientific material- ism, and was based on a belief in the material origins of man rather than theistic creation. Hence there arose an anti-evolution crusade under the capable leadership of William Jennings Bryan, who was convinced that evolutionary teaching would cause students to lose their faith in the Bible and would later lead them to reject Christianity altogether. "What Bryan dreaded most was the possibility of atheistic evolutionists being graduated from the colleges, invading public schools as teachers, and undermining the Christian faith of American school children."79 ”Link. 220 23:20, Fe 2990 89 In his crusade, Bryan used his monthly magazine, The Commoner, to carry his message. Be carried his fight to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, and also addressed many state legislatures through the South and Middle West. 0n the state scene "the only state in which the anti-evolutionists had won a decisive victory by 1925 was Tennessee,"80 although in some other states there were limited victories. The evolutionist controversy came to a climax in the Scopes trial of 1925. John ScOpes, a young high school biology teacher, was being tried for violating the state law prohibiting the teaching of evolution. The trial, held in the little town of Dayton, Tennessee, received nationwide attention because of the star performers pleading their cases. William Jennings Bryan, three-time candidate for the presidency of the United States and spokesman for fundamentalism, served as prosecuting attorney, while the defense had Chicago's brilliant and well-known lawyer, Clarence Darrow. "The immediate issue before the court was, of course, whether Jehn Scopes had violated Tennessee law. But the issue before the country was far larger than that."81 Fer Bryan the Bible and fundamental Chris- tianity was on trial. For Darrow the issue was intellectual freedom. When the trial was over, Scopes was found guilty and was given a token fine. Elsewhere, however, fundamentalism seems to have lost its case, as subsequent battles went to the liberal fold. ‘Qghg£,Theological Currents. we group together here several theo- logical issues, which deserve mention, but yet the limitations of space preclude extended treatment. 8OIbid. allawin Scott Gaustad, A_Religious History g£_America (New Yerk: Harper and new, 1966), p. 259. 90 First is the doctrine of humanism, which is associated with a strong emphasis upon scientific religion. "The extreme new humanist abolished the supernatural and denied 'the existence of any God other than the God resident in the human-will-to-goodness.’"82 Humanism, then, objects to the view that God is a personality. Instead man becomes the measure of all things. God's personality is made to depend upon human verification. "If observation and reason made it unmistakably evident that God is a personality, it would be another matter. But observation and reason do not so testify."83 Sweet calls this a "fair-weather" theology which flourishes in times of prosperity and fades in times of depression. The teaching of humanism found tangible expression in the early 1930's, in the formulating of "A Humanist Manifesto" signed by thirty-four editorial, literary, educational, and religious leaders of the day.85 flea-orthodoxy is another important theological consideration, being imported from the European continental scene. It was first intro- duced into the United States by way of the appearance of Karl Barth's _Thg Load 93: $2 and the 333:3 2.1:. 1432, in the mglish translation. This new emphasis was really the old one of the great divergence between God and man. This new trend, however, was not a simple return to orthodoxy. Many of the neo-orthodox had begun as liberals and then reacted against it. 82Sweet, The Story g£_Religion in America, p. #19. 83Henry Nelson Hieman, "Theocentric Religion", quoted in Smith, .e_1_=_. £1718. .1. American Christianity (New York: Charles Cribner's Sons, 1963), p. 2 . ausnetg 22o 22'}... pe #ZOe 85For enumeration of some of its principles and some of the signers, 30° Mth, 25.. file, American Christianit , Pe 250e 91 They objected particularly to the use of reason or natural theology, which was the forte of the liberal. 0n the other hand, they were criti- cal of fundamentalism, having accepted biblical criticism in its most radical forms.86 Other important names in the movement are those of Emil Brunner and Reinhold Niebuhr, who had had extensive influence. Brunner's The MES. Immtive and Niebuhr's Egg-3.1. Han and Immoral Society and The m 22$ Destiny 2:; fl and other works have espoused the nee-orthodox position. Last, we mention millennialism. This term refers to the belief that Christ shall return and establish a better world, succeeding our present society, and eliminating all its ills and woes. There are vari- ants among the adherents of this position, and it has fluctuated in its prominence since the first Christian century. The postmillennial view is that there will be improvement in this world and its society until the better kingdom will be ushered in. The opposite or premillennial view takes a dim view of a better world here and now and awaits Christ's personal return to set up His kingdom under His personal rule. At times there have been those in the major denominations who have believed and proclaimed such a faith. This teaching experienced a revival before our century in the Prophetic Conference of 1878, and subsequent similar conferences led by clergymen of such churches as Presbyterian, Reformed, Episcopal, and others.87 In the 1920's and '30's it flourished again. Sweet reports: As a result premillennialism flourished as it had not since the days of Hilliamxfliller himself. Premillennial propaganda had become in- 86n°rd9rng 92m 93:53. Do llZe 875.1th, 22e flee Pe 315e 92 creasingly undenominational and great quantities of literature were spread broadcast throughout the country. Small sects which made pre- millennialism central in their teaching of course flourished, but it became increasingly also "the rallying point for various reactionary elements" within the larger denominations, especially among those who held to literal inspiration and verbal infallibility.88 With the coming of the depression, those who saw little chance for a better life in this world saw something appealing in the teaching of the speedy return of the Lord to make all things new. Thg'Ecumenical Movement. One of the distinctive features of this century in the development of Christianity is that of the so-called ecumenical movement. The term comes from the Greek word, cikoumenos, meaning the inhabited world, hence referring to that which is world-wide or general in scope. The ecclesiastical world uses it today to refer to the broad fellowship of Christian churches functioning in some degree of harmonious relationship. As an inter-denominational phenomenon, it has manifested itself in a more distinctive way in our century than previously. Some students give credit to the influence of the social gospel for lowering church barriers and bringing denominational fellowships closer together. Robert Meats Miller says, "The successful penetration of American Protestantism by the social gospel is symbolized by the forma- 89 In tion of the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America." America before the twentieth century there was very little church merger or discussion going on,90 and the level of interest in church cooperation left much to be desired. Sweet, in writing of the years prior to 1900, 88Sweet, _Thg Story 93 Religi on in America, p. #19. 89 ---, Thg_History 2; American Methodism, p. 394. ”Nash, 92e 231:}. p. 249e 93 states, "One of the great weaknesses of American Protestantism [was] its inability to speak with a united voice on matters of moral and religious concern."91 In the years of 1908 and 1910 some notable events took place which were to have great effect. It is the consensus of many present- day ecumenists that the modern movement definitely begins with the year of 1910. In that year two far-reaching events took place. One was the Edinburgh Missionary Conference, which gave rise to the International Missionary Council. The other was a resolution of the Protestant Episco- pal Church in the U. S. A., in October, 1910, calling for the promotion of "a Conference following the general method of the World Missionary Conference. . . for the consideration of questions pertaining to the Faith and Order of the Church of Christ."92 This step resulted after several years in the Faith and Order Movement. However, two years earlier on the American national scene a notable event took place by way of the formation of the previously men- tioned Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America. "In 1905 the constitution of the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America was drawn up, and three years later (1908), after ratification by the thirty denominations constituting its first membership, it began "93.9% operations. The three main purposes of this council, which were 918weet, 22e fie, Pe 366e 92Leonard Hodgson, The Ecumenical Movement (Sewanee, Tenn.: The University Press, 1951). Pajl6. 93Sweet, 92. 933., p. 389. 9“The year of the founding of the Federal Council was the year that Clovis Chappell began preaching. His church was a cooperating church. 91, incorporated into its Constitution were "The manifestation of the essential oneness of the Christian churches of America in Jesus Christ as their divine Lord and Savior; the promotion of the spirit of fellow- ship, service and cooperation; and the prosecution of work that could better be done in union than in separation."95 A few years later in Europe several historic meetings of an ecumenical nature were taking place such as the Werld Conference on Life and Work, held in Stockholm in 1925, which devoted itself to the study of applied Christianity, and the World Conference on Faith and Order, meeting at Lausanne in 1927, which dealt with problems of doctrine and worship.96 "Ten years later, in the summer of 1937, there met at Oxford and Edinburgh two other ecumenical conferences where the work begun at Stockholm and Lausanne was continued."97 Climaxing these years of working toward greater unity, there met at Amsterdam, between August 22 and September #, l9#8, the representatives of 135 church bodies from forty nations to form a world Council of Churches. "John R. Mott, whose work through the years had done more to prepare the way for world Christian unity than that of any other individual was chosen 98 and Dr. Visser 't Hooft of the Dutch Reformed Church honorary president" was chosen as the general secretary. Church-State Relations ang'Protestant-Catholic Tensions. As the first half of our century waned, we found revived tensions between Catholics and Protestants, involving the historic church-state principle of separa- tion. The controversy has particularly been centered upon the question of 96Sweet, 22. 231., p. #26. 981bideg p. l.‘38e 95M, 22. SEE-e, p. 252e 97mm. . p. #27. 95 aid to parochial schools in various forms. Two historic Supreme Court decisions of the l9#0's are involved in this present subject of discussion. The first is the New Jersey School Bus case, in which the court by a narrow margin affirmed the constitution- ality of the use of public funds to pay bus fares of Catholic children attending parochial schools. The second is the Champaign, Illinois, case which had to do with the teaching of sectarianism in the public schools. The decision "forbade the use of either public school buildings or school machinery in the furthering of sectarian teaching."99 Both decisions have been the basis for much subsequent controversy. In l9#9 the Barden bill was before Congress, providing for a federal grant of $300,000,000 to be used in subsidizing public schools only. Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt in a syndicated column came out in favor of the bill. "This public statement by Mrs. Roosevelt regarding her stand brought the most astounding blast from Cardinal Spellman, recognized as the most influential Catholic official in the nation,"100 which attack resulted in further accusations. Another facet of these tensions was the appointment in 1939 by President Roosevelt of a personal envoy to the Vatican, in the person of Myron C. Taylor. A few years later these issues resulted in the formation of Protestants and Other Americans United for Separation of Church and State, founded in l9#7. Demographic Changes. As we close this survey of the religious climate, it might be worthwhile to note some of the growth rates of religious 991bid., p. 495. looIbid., pp. 443,4#h. 96 groups of the population. Between the religious censuses of 1916 and 1936, the total membership for all faiths in the United States moved from 41,927,000 to 55,807,000, or a gain of 33 per cent, which was faster than the population growth (27 per cent). In that time the Roman Catholic per cent of the total slipped slightly, from 37.5 to 36 per cent of all church members.101 However, during the depression years a counter trend occurred. Sweet notes that among a number of the larger Protestant bodies, in- cluding the Methodists, losses in membership were experienced, while "at the same time revivals were in progress among the Pentecostal and Holi- ness bodies, which were ministering to the people who were most in dis- tress as a consequence of the general economic collapse."102 Among these growing groups during the depression years were the Church of the Nazarene, the Assemblies of God, and two of the Churches of God. World War II years and the post-war period, nevertheless, saw a general improvement in the religious trend. "The onset of war and return to full prosperity abruptly reversed the downward plunge in church member- ship and influence in 1940-1; and the return to religion constituted one of the most significant and intellectual movements in the United States during the following two decades?103 which reaches past the boundaries of this study. This high-lighting of many of the important phenomena, together 101mm, pp. 933., p. 293. loszeet, 220 fie, pm 1604. losLink, 92. 93.5., p. 659. 9‘7 with trends and changes in the social and ecclesiastical climate of America during the first half of this century, should afford us a reasonable background against which to view the work and ministry of Clovis Chappell. He preached and pastored in the days of increasing urbanization; of prohibition, before and after; of change from the horse and buggy to a motorized America; in the days of some of the historic theological controversies; and he saw the rise of the modern ecumenical movement. CHAPTER V CHAPPELL‘S PHILOSOPHY AND THEORY OF PREACHING Having looked at our speaker himself, his beliefs, his church, and the world of his day, we turn now to some specific beliefs that Dr. Chappell holds concerning the work of preaching. As all experienced speakers do, Chappel has developed some definite ideas about his craft, which have been worked out upon the anvil of experience. Before hearing these views, it might be worthwhile to remind our- selves of the kind of man to whom we are listening. Our speaker was obviously more of a practitioner of homiletics than a theoretician, al- though he has directed his attention to the latter. His whole career was devoted to the pastoral ministry plus a host of other speaking, both while in the pastorate and now in the years of retirement. He has been an active speaker for more than sixty years.1 However, because at times he has been asked for his views on preaching, which we shall shortly cite, we do have in tangible form some of his ideas about, and philosophy of, preaching. Second, it is worthy of note that we are listening to a man who loved his work and had a zest for preaching. He has recorded for us this joy as follows: Yet, be it said to the praise of my patient Lord, here I am with more than forty years of joyous ministry behind me. These have been faulty years, but they have been in the main years of gladsome certainty. lln a letter to this writer he states concerning his retirement speaking, "I have preached on the average of approximately two hundred and fifty times a year. Consequently I would say I have preached about five thousand times in the twenty-one years since I retired." 98 99 I have so loved my vocation that it has been without a rival. While I honor other callings, they have been as starlight to sunlight in comparison with preaching the unsearchable riches of Christ. There- fore, if I had my life to live over again, and if God were again to honor me with his call, I should say today with greater eagerness than I did yesterday, "Here an I; send me."2 Our sources of material are not abundant, yet sufficient for an adequate formulation of a philosophy and a theoretical system. Our chief source is a series of lectures which he delivered at Candler School of Theology of Emory university, about 1951. These have been published under the title, Anointed £2 Preach. He has a short chapter in Joseph Fort Newton's compilation, _I_; I Had But One Sermon to Pr‘fl!‘ and as a secondary source, we have a brief commentary on Chappell's preaching in Andrew W. Blackwood's Preaching in Time g£_Reconstruction. The format to be followed here will be, first, to consider his general ideas about preaching, which would constitute his philosophy; and, secondly, to consider some of his theories such as would fall in the rhetorical area of Invention. His Concept and Philosophy 22 Preaching His Faith in Preaching Dr. Chappell gives evidence of a strong faith in the importance and efficacy of preaching. He would be one of the last ever to admit that preaching is becoming out-dated and is losing its power as a per- suasive and molding force in Christianity. He believes in it strongly. He articulates this faith in descriptive fashion in these words: Eyery great day of the Church has been a day of great preaching. As long as the light has shown brightly in the pulpit, there has been 2Chappell, Anointed £2.Preach, pp. 28,29. 100 some measure of daylight everywhere. But, "when the light has gone out in the pulpit, it has gone out around the world."3 As a Biblical illustration in support of this faith he cites a problem time in the Early Church when the apostles (in Acts 6) were divid- ing their spiritual ministry by devoting time to many administrative tasks. When this problem was solved by assigning the benevolent tasks to others and giving themselves to prayer and preaching of the Herd, it is then recorded, "The word of God increased." He also believes that it is the record of church history that when preaching declined, Christianity declined, and when preaching revived, the Christian Church rose up strong. As a correlative of his faith that preaching is effectual, he also believes that such a work is very important. He calls preaching the major work of a minister, the aspect of his labor that should command his first attention. we cannot give ourselves equally to every activity of our church. we cannot give every syllable of our program the same accent. we have to put the emphasis somewhere. Where are we to put that emphasis? It was the conviction of these ancient preachers that they ought to major on preaching. That also is my conviction. To put our chief emphasis anywhere else is, in my opinion, to major on minors. He considers preaching to be the main job of the preacher, the particular task to which God in His wisdom has called us. He states, "Since preach- ing is our business, it is our first duty to mind our own business."5 Chappell in his pastoral preaching exalted the office of the Christian ministry, not to call attention to himself, but to commend such a vocation to parents and children. In a sermon dealing with Hannah, who 3Ibid., p. #5. “Ibid., p. 37. 5Ibid., p. 390 101 gave her boy Samuel to the Lord's service, he said, Then I wondered, in the second place, how she could hope for anything better or finer for her sons than that they should be ministers of the Gospel of Christ. I do not see how anybody could wish for any- thing higher either for themselves or for others. To me it is the finest of all privileges. . . . I think I rejoice with increasing joy as the days go by that to me is this grace given, that I might preach the unsearchable riches of Christ. His Philosophy of the Function of Preaching . Clovis Chappell sees Christian preaching as having a very edify- ing and elevating function. He believes that the human race stands in great need, and that the gospel of Christ communicated through preaching can wonderfully bring remedy to those needs. Andrew H. Blackwood, the outstanding homiletics professor of Princeton, sees this as the belief of our speaker. Dr. Chappell has a more or less clearly defined philosophy of the preacher's mission today. If preaching is divine truth voiced by a chosen personality to meet human need, this man's emphasis is chiefly on the human need. In going through his sermons one feels that he has prepared each of them in order to help his hearers over the hard places of life.7 One who holds this conception of the function of preaching would naturally be very practical in his preaching, and that Dr. Chappell is. Nearly every sermon holds out something for man to believe, something to do, or something to sustain and encourage. He is presenting not merely truth, but truth applied to everyday living. For him Christianity is not abstract but relevant to the needs of mankind today. A concept taken from Phillipe Brooks of a century age may be helpful by contrast. He speaks of a tendency in his day of "criticism," 6Chappell, _Th_g_ VilLagg m, p. 68. 7 Andrew Hatterson Blackwood, Preach ' Mof Reconstruction (Great Neck, New York: The Pulpit Press, l§£§),n p. 33.— 102 and proceeds to explain how he uses that term. "By the tendency of criticism I mean the disposition that prevails everywhere to deal with things from outside, discussing their relations, examining their nature, and not putting ourselves into their power."8 For these preachers the function is that of rumination. Brooks continues, "There are many preachers who seem to do nothing else, always discussing Christianity as a problem instead of announcing Christianity as a message, and pro- claiming Christ as a Savior."9 Chappell does not conceive of the work of preaching as merely discussing problems, a kind of mental gymnastics, but a work of proclaiming a beneficial message that has value and rela- tionship to people's needs. Another aspect of Clovis Chappell's philosophy of preaching is that it calls for decision and action. This is certainly in harmony with much of rhetorical theory both ancient and modern. ”Oral rhetoric, as expounded and applied by the Greek rhetoricians aimed especially at persuasion. Rhetoric, to Aristotle, was 'the faculty of observing in a given case what are the available means of persuasion.'"10 Among modern writers, R. C. Jebb defines rhetoric as "the art of using language in such a way as to produce a desired impression on the hearer or reader."11 According to Kenneth Burke, advocate of the "new rhetoric," "The basic function of rhetoric is the use of words by human agents to form attitudes 8Phillips Brooks, Lectures on Preaching (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, Reprinted 1969), pp. 19,20. 9Ib1d., pp. 20,21. 1oLane Cooper(tr.), The Rhetoric of Aristotle, (New York: Apple- ton-Century-Crofts, 1932), p. *7. 11Richard C. Jebb, article "Rhetoric," in Encyclopedia Britannica, vol. 19, p. 246 ff. 103 or to induce actions on other human agents."12 The speaker who is the subject of this study believes that a sermon should be persuasive in nature, that it should have a definite goal, a target, so that when the sermon is concluded, the hearers are not merely impressed with some beautiful thoughts, but sense that it has ar- rived at a destination.13 Chappell's comment on the report of a Scottish preacher who preached with great earnestness was, "Evidently this man did not go into the pulpit for target practice. He shot to kill."ln Chap- pell's preaching is designed to persuade. It has as its goal that the hearers make some sort of decision or take some appropriate action. On concluding a sermon he says, "Having thus reached a definite conclusion, we can invite our people to accept that conclusion and to act upon it. It has been my custom across the years to invite my hearers to accept the conclusion that I have sought to reach."15 Preaching--A Divine-Human work Another characteristic of Chappell's conception of preaching is that it is not alone a human work, undertaken by man's choice, and executed by man's own dynamics. Rather he views it as "synergistic" or jointly performed by a working together of man and God. For Dr. Chappell and many thousands of others who have undertaken the work of preaching, it has been at the initiation of a so-called "divine 12Kenneth Burke, A Rhetoric‘g£_flotives (Bhglewood Cliffs, N. J.; Prentice-Hall, Inc., 19567, 33:51. 1 3Chappell, Anointed £2_Preach, p. 81. 14Ibid., p. 105. 151bid., p. 68. 10# call." Men have felt solicited of God for such a work, and the speaker we are studying believes himself thus divinely impressed into such ser- vice.16 He cites the historic testimony of the centuries to the recur- ring experience of a divine call. He notes (1) that in both 01d and New Testaments men of God witness to such a call; (2) that the pages of church history record the testimony of many men who give similar claim; and (3) that there are hundreds today who affirm that "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach."17 Such speakers regard themselves as spokesmen for God. They view their preaching as a divine-human work. Chappell records, "Preaching is a divine-human adventure. No man can hope to preach victoriously without the undergirding of God,"18 and "I am convinced that to preach with the consciousness that the blessed Holy Spirit is taking the message and seal- ing it to the hearts of the congregation is about the most thrilling exper- ience that any man may know this side the gates that are of pearl."19 Thus in the conception of preaching held by Dr. Chappell and others like him, there is a dimension added to preaching which distine guishes it from what might be called "secular rhetoric." Because of this divine dimension there are a few who would classify homiletics as some- thing separate from rhetoric; yet actually homiletics is in large part but the taking of the principles of rhetoric and adapting them to the use of preaching. John A. Broadus in his widely used work, 9; the Preparation.§£§.Delivegz g; Sermons so applies this interpretation, 161mm, pp. 28,29. 171hid., pp. 12,17. 181mm, pp. 69,70. 19Ibid., pp. 88,89. 105 speaking of homiletics as "the adaptation of rhetoric to the ends of Christian preaching."20 The Preacher Himself Ancient rhetoric contains a number of references to the qualifi- cations of an orator. In this regard Cicero states, "A knowledge of a vast number of things is necessary, without which volubility of words is empty and ridiculous."21 Quintillian affirmed than an orator is a good man speaking well.22 Similarly most homileticians include some of the things that a preacher should be or do to equip him for his work. Our "theorist" whom we are studying gives us some qualifications or standards which he be- lieves a speaker of divine truth would do well to possess as far as possible. One of his lectures to the ministers and seminarians at Candler School of Theology was entitled, "Keeping Fit." He places the responsibility for any failure in the minister squarely upon the minister himself, saying, "This is the case because no man can disqualify a minis- ter but himself."23 Chappell uses the common tripartite division of the physical, mental, and spiritual, and comments on measures to take to keep oneself qualified in each of these areas. He reminds us that if we are to keep fit to preach, we must look aoJ'ohn A. Broadus, On the Preparation and Delivery g£_Sermons, rev. by Jesse Burton Heatherspoon:'zNew York: Harper & Brothers, 19555, p. 9. 21Cicero,_D_e_.Oratore, tr. by J. S. Hatson (London: H. G. Bohn, 1855), 1,5. 22mm. , pp. 99,101. 23Chappell, Anointed tg_Preach, p. 108. 106 well to our physical needs. "This body of mine is my friend. . . . It is the instrument that I must use. . . . This body is that through which I am to preach. If by abusing it I make it incapable of such service, then my preaching days are oven"?+ He recommends such ordinary things as good eating habits, that a minister ought to learn how to play, to learn how to rest, and also to take a vacation for one's good. Next he urges upon preachers that mental discipline is necessary to the cultivation of the mind. One must keep studying to keep growing. "To do that a minister must work. He must spend mornings in his study 25 unless some emergency arises. He must make a habit of it." If he becomes lazy and ceases to prepare new sermons, he will lose the cap- acity to prepare. Thirdly, he stresses the need to keep vital in one's religious experience. This undergirds all else and is the indispensable ingred- ient. He needs to take heed of his private devotions, that of reading of the Herd of God and of praying. This is necessary in order to keep sensitive to the will of God and to keep a tender heart of compassion toward the needs of people. As a student and practitioner of preaching the preacher must be a diligent workman. Chappell believes that a preacher should begin early in the week to prepare for Sunday, emphasizing the fact that there may be hundreds present on Sunday to hear him preach, who will be helped or hindered by what he says. "For this reason I ought to have something to say that is vital and worthwhile. That this may be the case, I ought 2"mid. , pp. 109,110. 25Ibid., p. 115. 107 to study to show myself a sound workman without cause to feel ashamed."26 He says that if we fail after prayerfully and diligently doing our best, there is some excuse, but if we fail because we have taken it easy, or because we have presumed on our ability to prepare the sermon quickly, then we are without excuse. The Role of the Sermon in the worship Service The role of preaching in the various branches of Christianity is quite varied. In the more liturgical churches the liturgy (that is, the formulated act of worship in which pe0p1e share with the minister or priest) may overshadow the sermon, as does the Mass in the Roman Catholic Church. Toward the other end of the continuum one finds many of the Protestant churches where the sermon is the focal point of the worship service, and this is often symbolized by the centrality of the pulpit in the chancel arrangement. Some other Protestant churches emphasize ritual, with the high altar being central to the worship service. Chappell discussed these two approaches to worship, commonly found in Protestant churches, with the ministers gathered at Candler School of Theology: There was a time when we called the first half of the service-~the singing, the reading of the scripture, and the prayer--"the prelim- inaries." Of course it was an unfortunate and rather a slanderous name. Furthermore we can safely say that we never quite meant all that such a shabby name suggests-though some probably came too near doing so. But today we tend to go to the other extreme. It is the sermon that now must often take second place. Having come to regard the first half of the service of importance, some have come to look upon preaching as a mere appendix. In many modern pulpits the priest threatens to push the prophet out of his place.27 261-bide’ p. 70. ”Ride, p. 96. 108 He believes that the service is not of two parts, and these in contrast to each other. "The service should be a unit. It ought to begin with something that is of worth and reach a climax in the preach- ing of the sermon. Surely it should not begin with a climax and end in an ant:i.clillax."‘?'8 He feels that the service reaches its climax in the delivery of the minister's message from God. He mentions his own experience at times of sitting in the pew, and has been uplifted by the singing of the hymns and the reading of the scripture, "but my edifica- tion has usually reached its climax in the hearing of the sermon."‘29 Clovis Chappell represents the non-liturgical tradition, and he emphasizes the sermon as the focal point of the worship service. He borrows a phrase from Winston Churchill and calls the hour of worship, "Our Finest Hour."30 From these considerations discussed in the above pages we grasp Chappell's philosophy and concept of preaching. He believes (l) in the efficacy of preaching: (2) that it functions to meet human needs and to prompt to decision and action; (3) that it is a divine-human endeavor in which God works through men; (A) that it merits the speaker's best-- physically, mentally, spiritually, and (5) that the worship service reaches its climax in the preaching of the sermon. His Theogz‘g£.1nvention At this point in our progress we consider Dr. Chappell's theories of homiletics which would fall in the rhetorical area of In- vention. Hence here we are blending homiletics and rhetorical theory. 281bid., be 970 29Ibid. 30Ibid., p. 88. 109 Invention is usually considered as the first stage in the rhetorical process, the gathering of materials by investigation, analysis, creation, selection, and adaptation. It involves an attempt on the part of the orator, "as Cicero says, 'to find out what he should say. . . .' It is an investigative undertaking, embracing a survey and forecast of the subject and a search for the arguments suitable to the given rhetorical 31 effort." Other constituents involving preparation and delivery will be considered in the following chapter. First, Chappell has set forth in different places what we would call the characteristics of a good sermon, some standards that an effer- tive message ought to meet. Near the top of his list would be the re- quirement that the sermon should be interesting. In his selection in In my opinion one fundamental need of present-day preaching is that it be interesting. The modern congregation is not easily gripped. It is often made up of people who have been about everywhere there is to go, have seen about all there is to be seen, and have heard about all there is to hear. . . . Many of them are therefore in a sense "fed up." Eagerness and expectancy are not greatly in evidence as they come to church.32 He lists a number of factors that enter into making the sermon interesting: the preacher himself must be earnest and thoroughly human; the subject must be timely; its treatment must be intellectually respect- able, yet simple; it helps if it is illuminated by pertinent illustra- tions; and it may be aided by elements that prompt to laughter or to tears}5 31 3ZJ’oseph Fort Newton (ed.), If I Had Only_ One Sermon tom epare (New Yerk: Harper & Brothers, 1932), p.1-lE§'. 331bide, p. lsoe Thongsen and Baird, 92. Cite, p. 790 110 Some of these factors will be mentioned again a little later. In addition to being interesting, the sermon, he believes, should be simple. He would rather embrace the whole congregation in the sweep of his message, if possible, rather than a few of the elite. . . . there was never greater need of simplicity. A brother said to me some days ago, "My message is to the intellectually elite." I knew at once that he had a small audience. Modern preaching must be so simple, not that an intelligent and alert hearer can understand 1::3Eut that a stupid and listless hearer cannot help but understand Blackwood discusses Chappell's sermons, evaluating them from the point of view of those sermons that he had read. He judges, "The sermons of Dr. Chappell are simple in substance. In any one discourse he does not attempt to survey the heavens and the earth. . . . In the reading one almost never has to glance back in order to be sure what he means."35 Another characteristic of a good sermon, according to Chappell, is that it be timely. It must "deal with the needs and problems of today rather than of yesterday."36 we can be sure that by this he does not mean to suggest the mere discussion of current events, for it is obvious that Chappell did very little of this in his preaching, but timely in the sense of being apropos to the vital needs of the congregation. Fourth, our speaker believes that the message should sound a note of encouragement. The preacher should be a "herald of happiness." "When- ever a minister preaches a discouraging sermon, he is not preaching a Christian sermon. 0n the contrary, he is preaching a wicked sermon. . . . N0 man has a right so to preach as to send his hearers away on flat tires."37 BuIbido SSmCRVOOd, 22. £122., Po 36o 36Newton,‘gp_. cit., p. 150. 37Chappell, Apointed tg.Preach, p.62. 111 In another place he states, "Modern preaching should be full of comfort and hope. . . . Blessed is he that knows how to speak to broken hearts. Every minister ought to seek to preach in such a fashion that he will be a Barnabas, a son of consolation to those who hear him."38 Fifth, the sermon should be positive and constructive. He rejects the thought of a sermon's being negative and denunciatory. Not that at times such elements may be appropriate and needed, but they should be used so as to clear the ground, "not merely to destroy, but 'to build, and to plant.‘ Always we are to preach a positive gospel."39 He expands help- fully on the figure of tare-pulling. One persistent temptation is to set himself to the impossible task of pulling up all the tares by the roots. Tare-pulling has ever been a rather exciting and spectacular performance. It has a great show of wisdom and courage. . . . The modern congregation is not greatly interested. . . . They know that no amount of pulling of tares will guarantee one single grain of golden wheat. They know that the only sure weapon against error is truth that the only foe £5 sickness is health, that the only victory over darkness is light. The last characteristic of a good sermon that we include here is that it have a note of authority. Jesus spoke with authority, and the common people heard him gladly. Chappell believes the same can be true today. "Jesus spoke with an authority born of his own experience. Such must be the authority of the modern preacher."‘*1 He believes that the preacher who has really come to a first-hand knowledge of God, who can speak out of a present awareness of Him, can still speak with authority today. Preaching that lacks this note cannot be comforting and encourag- ing, for it is built upon a sandy foundation. In other words, if it lacks 38 Newton, _op. 25., pp, 151,152. 39Chappell, Anointed 1:2 Preach, p. 5'. “CROWD, 22. 223-0. p0 1510 #lI'bid" Fe 1520 112 authority, what is there solid in which people can put their confidence? When Chappell starts to prepare a sermon, where does he turn for "grist."? He has one chief source to which he invariably turns, and that is the Bible. Be is very much a Bible preacher. He goes to it for texts, and he draws upon it again and again for material in the development of his points. In his own approach to preaching while in the active pastorate he used the Bible often by way of bringing a sermon series on Bible charac- ters or to present a particular book of the Bible. He says, The Bible holds the mirror up to nature as no other book ever written. Here are living men. If you prick them, they will bleed. They are as vivid as your next-door neighbor, and sometimes far more interesting. Given a chance, they will walk into your pulpit and live and laugh and sing and sob with you. . . . Then too such preaching will always be up to date because the heart of humanity is the same through the ages. . . 2 His starting point for any sermon is always a text. He told this writer, "I always take a text,""k3 and an examination of his many volumes of sermons bears this out. He comments, in Anointed 22.222222! "Probably I began to employ this method because it was in vogue when I entered the ministry. I have continued to use it through the years because of a very profound conviction that Bible-centered preaching is at one the most helpful and the least taxing."M How does our speaker find a text? no relates that it is rather futile for him to go in search of a text. He has found them usually as a by-product of his devotional reading. Be reads primarily for his own 42Chappell, Anointed Eg'Preach, pp. 73,7#. #3 In an interview.August 19, 1969. See Appendix II. “hChappell, Anointed.tg_Preach, p. 76. 113 devotional good, but truths that come to speak to him he often wishes to share with others. "As I thus read the word for myself, when I come to a passage that speaks to my own heart, then I take courage to believe that this same passage might speak helpfully to my people."h5 He does not recommend the practice of looking for texts that are novel, unknown, or anemic, and then for the preacher to demonstrate what he can supposedly bring out of them, seeking to edify the congregation by giving the text a blood transfusion. Instead he gives this helpful ad- vice: "Therefore let me urge you to select great, helpful, strong, brawny texts. Choose a text that you do not have to support, but that will sup- port you. "#6 How then does Chappell recommend that one get the "meat" out of his text? Some spade-work in the soil of the text needs to be done to unearth its fuller meaning. This is the analysis step. Here is the pro- cess of Invention at work. Speaking out of his own experience he states: When I have decided upon a text, I read and reread the text and the context. This I do over and over again. As I thus read, I seek to open every door of my mind and heart to both text and context. I listen not only to what the passage says directly, but to what it suggests. I also listen to every story of which it reminds me. As it suggests these things I Jot them down-not in full, but in the briefest possible form. 7 In this study of text and context he did make some use of his Greek in his early ministry, but he turned to the new translations when they came out, and found help in them."8 A survey of his texts reveals “5mm" p. 77. 1.6Ib1de, pe 78e h7Ibide’ ppe 78,79e #8Ole Aarvold, "Clovis G. Chappell: The Han and His Message," an unpublished thesis for Pastor of Theology degree at Asbury Theological Seminary, 1953. This was reported in a letter to Aarvold from Chappell. See p. #1 of thesis. 11% that they are often taken from Goodspeed, Heymouth, Hoffatt, or others. The next step in the study process for him is to turn to other sources and to "read everything on the subject I could find."49 This reading of correlating material supplies additional ideas and often pro- vides illustrations. As to the wisdom of reading the sermons of others, Chappell is not as fearful of this practice as some other persons are. He mentions that he himself was warned by a presiding elder of the deadly danger of reading another-man's sermons-that it would endanger his integrity and destroy his originality.50 He sees no greater danger in reading another man's sermon than in hearing another man's, if preachers do not become copyists. "Perhaps the greatest service that one minister can render another in the matter of preaching is to give him inspiration to set his mental and spiritual machinery in motion."51 Chappell takes special delight in series preaching (that is, a series of sermons on a related theme) and highly recommends the practice. He cites two advantages in series preaching: (1) it has the very decided advantage of enabling the minister to know his destination when he wakes up on Monday morning-it puts his mind at rest on the question, What shall I preach?, and (2) preaching by series will save the minister from riding a hobby. It will save him from preaching.only on those themes that are congenial and easy, and also to some extent it will bring up themes that his congregation needs to hear, which he might otherwise neglect. This #9Chappell, Anointed.tg'Preach, p. 79. soIbid. slIbid., pp. 79,80. 115 longer awareness of the subject upon which one is to speak aids consider- ably the inyentional process, for "it is marvelous how what we see, what we experience, what we read will contribute to the preparation of our sermon if we know our theme far enough in advance."52 As to the appropriate length of such a series, he recommends that such a series ought not to be too long. "To announce as many as twenty subjects at once tends rather to swamp the interest of the pro- spective bearer. A series of five to ten is better?3 Naturally the theme of a series can be drawn from a vast variety of subjects. Chappell recommends a series on certain types of Bible characters, a practice in which he has specialized and excelled. Given a chance. . . . they will also preach for you, a kind of preaching that will be fresh and interesting because it comes out of life. Then too such preaching will always be up to date because the heart of humanity is the same through the ages--"ever pulsating to the same great needs, the same great loves and longings." Preac on Bible characters, therefore, is at once gripping and helpful. Another approach which one might take is to consider a particular book of the Bible. Almost any book of the Bible may be used for this. In fact, Chappell has published books of sermons based on the book of Job, the Psalms, and the Revelation. Some of the many possibilities for other kinds of series may be suggested by certain of the other of his volume titles, such.as EEEH§E$2§ farm (on the Ten Commandments), M 32951522 93225, Sermons £325 1:9; Miracles, Sermons 5533 333 Parables, Questions 9325 551:3, and others.55 we turn now briefly to some statements about audience adaptation. ‘7 521mm,, 1). 72. 531mm, 1). 73. 5#Ibid., p. 7#. 55$ee Bibliography for a complete list of his books. 116 Because Chappell is not a rhetorician nor a professional homiletician, he does not cover the range of subjects included in a complete rhetoric; nevertheless, he has touched upon a number of the traditional areas. As to audience adaptation, Dr. Chappell recommends (and seeks to practice) that a preacher seek to include as many of his congregation as possible in his efforts to make them understand his message. He advises, But it is not to the intellectually elite only. It is also to those who are not so privileged. It is, in a special sense, to the boys and girls of our congregations. The minister who addresses himself to the few highly educated people who may be in his congregation and fergets that larger group who are sure to be there is being slightly silly if not positively wicked. Of course he should have something to say to the intellectually elite. But it is this group that will appreciate simplicity more than any other.56 In another place he counsels that a preacher should preach so that even the stupid and listless may also understand.57 When we come to the Aristotelian modes of persuasion, the speaker, whom we are studying has something to say appropriate to ethos, thos, and lo 3, or ethical.proof, emotional proof, and logical proof. By ethos we mean what in more modern terms is often called source credibility. It refers to those elements in and about a speaker that have persuasive weight with the hearers. Andersen and Clevenger have defined it as the image held of a communicator at a given time by a 58 receiver, either by one person or by a group. The constituent parts which Aristotle gives to ethos are intelligence, (competence), good char- 56(:ha.ppell, Anointed.tg_Preach, p. 55. 57". 58kenneth Andersen and Theodore Clevenger, Jr., "A Summary of Exper- imental Research in Ethos," Speech Monographs, xxx (June, 1963), p. 59. wton, 92. Elite, Pe IWe 117 acter, and good will.59 Dr. Chappell believes that there are a number of things that a preacher should be and do that will increase the effectiveness or persua— siveness of his message, in other words, build his gthgg, Be especially stresses that the preacher must be earnest and thoroughly human. Finally, let us be in earnest. There is something fascinating about an earnest man.l Barnestness helps to make possible the presence of God in the heart of the minister. No half-hearted saint can walk with a wholehearted Christ. . . . A house on fire is interesting. A man on fire is the most interesting thing in the world. . . . The man who stands in the pulpit, if he is to represent his Lord, must be a man who in laughter or in tears is desperately earnest. As to the thought that a preacher must be thoroughly human, Chap- pell's conviction is that a preacher must not seem to be aloof from the people, a stuffed saint dwelling in an ivory tower, but be a man among men, a person with whom the people can identify, a man of like passions. Two other factors that aid a preacher's stagg'are (1) that his treatment of his subject must be intellectually respectable,61 and (2) that his demeanor should be that of one who has really come to a first- hand knowledge of God, who speaks out of a present awareness of God,62 and is not trying to peddle second-hand truth that he has not first of all experienced himself. we turn now to the matter of emotional proof, or pathgg. Rhetori— cians, both ancient and modern, have recognized that man needs not only to be convinced of truth, but also to be moved. Here Chappell is in the comp pany of Aristotle, Cicero, and others. Cicero said, "For mankind make far 59lane Cooper (trans.), The Rhetoric g£,Aristotle (New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, Inc. , 1556)”, p. 92. 60Chappell, Anointed £2.Preach, pp. 10#,105. Mon. 22. Site, pe lSle 62 Ibid., p. 152. 118 more determination through hatred, or love, or desire, or anger, or grief, or joy, . . . than from.regard to truth, or any settled maxim, or principle of right. . . ."63 On this point Chappell writes, "There are those who frown upon anything in the pulpit that smacks of the emotional, but to bypass the emotional altogether is to bypass life. This is the case because life is largely woven out of the warp and woof of laughter and of tears."64 Also he believes that the "pathetic" element is a factor in making the sermon interesting. The third mode of persuasion in classical rhetoric is lo 8, or logical proof, which has to do with demonstration of the truth to the mind, the appeal to man's reason effected through arguments or evidence. While in an explicit way Dr. Chappell does not deal with the matter of argument, 235:22, some of his instructions and practices tell us how he handles this matter. For him the strongest argument for truth is the Bible itself. Concerning the Ten Commandments, for example, he refers to his first preaching experience of them in these words: "I was also amazed at the richness of the material in these ten rules for living. They have no more been antiquated by the passing of the centuries than has the law of gravity."65 In other words he accepted the Ten Command- ments as being in force and as a valid argument for appropriate behavior. A little further he speaks of the priceless material found in the Bible: "While I have sometimes heard earnest and intelligent worshipers complain 63616‘1‘0' a ”ton, II, x111, tr. and ed. J. S. Watson (Radon: George Bell, 1876). 6lI‘Clovis G. Chappell, In Parables (New Yerk & Nashville: Abingdon- Cokesbury Press, 1953), p. 9. _— 65Chappell, Anointed.tg.Preach, p. 73. 119 that their minister made too little use of the Bible, I have yet to hear one single soul complain that his minister made a too liberal use of this most priceless book."66 Another aspect of Chappell's logical proof would be his use of illustrations, which he strongly advocates: "Let us tell stories. It is said of Jesus that he spoke many things unto them in stories, and without a story spake he not unto them. Every preacher ought to make a 67 study of how to tell a story." And "If the sermon is illuminated by pertinent illustrations, so much the better."68 Admittedly illustrations can be used for motivational reasons (emotional proof) and even for ethical proof, but in many settings they serve the function of logical proof. The citing of examples and the using of analogies help to convince the mind. Evidence is often a strong argument in itself. Our speaker himself is a rich user of illustrations, naturally drawing many of them from the Bible. With a few skillful strokes he re- creates a scene or a character and makes it relevant to the hearers' cir- cumstances and time. Chappell also draws upon his personal experiences and often upon literature and other sources for his illustrations. Chappell admittedly has not worked out a complete system of homi- letics. Nevertheless, he has provided us with a variety of principles which have come largely out of his own experience as a practitioner. In this chap- ter we have presented many of the things in which he strongly believes, with 661bidm' PP. 76,77. 67Ibid., p. 101. Newton, 21. 233., p. 150. 120 respect to a philosophy of preaching and to some general principles of Invention that he has practiced and recommends to others. They are sufficient to afford us a working knowledge of his views in these areas. CHAPTER VI CBAPPELL'S ARRANGEMENT, STYLE, AND DELIVERY: THEORY.AND PRACTICE In this chapter we shall consider Dr. Chappell's theory and prac- tice of these phases of homiletics which fall in the area of three of the traditional canons of rhetoric, (invention having been considered in the previous chapter), with a fourth constituent (memory) being subsumed under the heading of "delivery." As previously noted, according to the classical tradition, rhetoric consisted of five parts: invention, disposition (arrangement), elocution (style), memory, and delivery. "These consti- tuents of rhetoric were first expounded in the Rhetorica ad Herennium (sometimes attributed to Cicero) published in 86 3.0."1 (Many question the validity of a Ciceronian origin and attribute them to an unknown authorship.) Traditionally, homiletics often speaks of "the preparation and deliverery of sermons." This concept would correspond quite well with the rhetorical concepts of invention, arrangement, style, and delivery. Hence we are blending the two disciplines; or to put it another way, we are interpreting these phases of homiletics within a rhetorical framework. To delineate further the method of this chapter, we are joining theory and practice together, comparing Dr. Chappell’s theory and his practice, and.et times illustrating his theory by his practice. Hence the 1A. Craig Baird, Rhetoric: A philosophical Inguigz (New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1965). p. 15. 121 122 divisions of this chapter will be: "Arrangement-Theory and Practice," "Style-Theory and Practice," and "Delivery-Theory and Practice." Arrangement-Theory and Practice Arrangement is that part of rhetoric which is concerned with the ordering of materials. It involves such elements as the plan or outline of the discourse at large, and of the specific parts of the discourse, such as introduction, body, and conclusion, or of such other divisions as may be used. Bhident order in a sermon or speech is deemed advantageous in at least two directions: (1) first of all it is of great importance to the speaker himself. It is an aid to the inventional process to help the speaker grasp how the different parts relate to each other and to help him to discover any aspects which he might have overlooked. (2) It is also of good effect upon the audience. For them to grasp some sort of pattern is both satisfying and an aid to comprehension.2 Dr. Chappell considers the organizing of a sermon into an outline as a vital and indispensable step. He says, "When we have gathered our material, the next step is one of supreme importance. That is the organis- ing of the material that we have gathered."3 And a little further, "It is therefOre a matter of fundamental importance that the sermon have a simple, logical, and concise outline. It ought to start, travel, and arrive."4 One of the key factors in the importance of an outline is that an 2John A. Broadus, g _Th_g Preation 95d Delivery _o_f_ Sermons, pp. *fie _ 3Clovis G. Chappell, Anointed.tg.Preach, p. 91. 1, Ibid. 123 outline is needed to give any discourse a sense of direction. Preaching is a ferm of persuasive speaking-~it has a target, and one must know how he purposes to get there. "A good sermon will reach a definite destina- tion. It will start, travel, and arrive. Blessed is the minister who knows where he is going before he sets out, the marksman who can see his mark clearly before he shoots."5 Because the preacher has a target or destination, he has a means of determining whether or not he has arrived at his goal. He is not like a boxer who is merely sparring or a rower using only one car. Herein lies another great advantage of an outline. If the preacher knows where he is going, he will know when he gets there. When we find it hard to quit, often it is because we did not know where we were going when we set out. Knowing our goal, we shall find it easy to stop when we arrive. There will also bepa naturalness about our stopping. We shall not quit because we have usgd up so many minutes, but because we have reached our destination. In contrast with those sermons which have marched directly toward a destination, Chappell describes another kind this way: "We have all heard pleasing sermons that left us with no abiding treasure. ‘The language was beautiful, the tone of voice pleasing, the thoughts impressive. But when the preacher had concluded, we realized that the sermon had failed to arrive."7 Chappell's philosophy is that a sermon is not intended neces- sarily to be aesthetic or designed merely to impress, but to move toward a goal of some decision or action. 1 Like Broadus (mentiOned above) Chappell sees the outline as having utilitarian value for both hearers and speaker. If "the minister has a simple, concise outline, his people can get what he says and can remember 5Ibid., p. 66. 51nd" pp. 67,68. 7mo., pp. 82,81. l2# at least a part of it. Not only so, but the minister himself can remember it."8 How many points should a good outline have? Our speaker does not consider this question crucial at all. He alludes to the fact that there are those who will argue against a standard outline of three divisions, who charge that the outline then becomes too mechanical and tends to rob a speaker of variety. His comments are, The number of parts into which a sermon is divided has nothing to do with variety. Few greater preachers have lived than Frederick W. Robertson. Nobody would be rash enough to accuse him of monotony. yet almost every one of his sermons is divided into two parts. All of us have the same outline, the same number of bones. Yet how vastly we differ one from another. The number of divisions that a sermon has is of no great significance.9 As to Chappell's practice in this matter of outlining, we find that he practices faithfully what he recommends. He always outlines his ser- mons, and usually the outline is fairly obvious in most cases. His sermon outlines are by no means stereotyped. Three divisions seem to predominate; but in the sermons examined and outlined by this investigator (see Appendix) one had as few as two divisions (”The Cross Before Calvary"), while another in which the outline not as expressly delineated indicated possibly seven points ("A woman's Fall"). All of the others outlined in this study had either three or four divisions. An examination of these points or division headings will reveal that these headings are not always parallel or co- ordinate. They often are of this nature, but are not consistently so. How does Dr. Chappell develop his theme or text? What kinds of outlines does he use? An examination of his outlines reveals at least 8Ibid., p. 82. 9Ibid.’ p. 85. 125 three common forms that they will take. First, there is the outline which is based on the narrative surrounding the text used. It may cor- respond with the progress of the story. In two of the outlines included in the Appendix each point is a scene in the narrative; and as the scene changes, the outline progresses. For example‘in his sermon, "The Man Who Ekperienced Easter," he proceeds in this fashion: Text: Luke 2#:31 - "They recognized him." I. Scene one-The homsward walk from Jerusalem. II. Scene two--On a different stretch of road we see three instead of two. III. Scene three-Within this humble home at Emmaus. IV. Scene four-They go forth to tell (a continuing scene).10 A second very common sermon design of Chappell's is that of using questions for his points and then proceeding to answer them. In a bio- graphical sermon entitled, "A Woman's Wrongs--Hagar," he used the text, "What aileth thee, Hagar?" (Gen. 21:17). The body of the sermon was built around these questions: I. What is implied by this question? 11. What response did Hagar make? III. What answer did God make to this pathetic story?11 Sometimes he may not fellow the question method consistently and instead may mix both questions and statements or possibly phrases. A third type of outline used by our speaker is to draw his points 10Clovis G. Chappell, fleet These 522, nClovis G. Chappell, Sermons an 91.3 Testament Characters. 126 either explicitly or implicitly from his text or its context. Chappell is very much a textual preacher (i.e., going to the passage itself or its context to derive his points). as is seldom guilty of the practice which.has become the butt of some humor among clergymen of "taking a text and departing from it." Chappell usually stays by his text and bases his points thereon. As an illustration of this method we would offer his outline used for "An Old Time Mother," a sermon based on the story of Bhnnah and Samuel. Bis points, all having a Biblical basis, are: I. She looked upon motherhood as a privilege. II. She was a praying mother. III. She was a wise mother. IV. She succeeded.12 A second outline of the above type may be included here for the reason that Dr. Chappell professes to have worked with it many times and offered it as a sample to the ministers and students at Candler School of ThQOlOne In seeking to prepare a sermon on the Pharisee and the publican I think I must have made at least fifty outlines before I hit upon what was final for me. It might not be final for you at all. But it stated simply what the parable said to me. It presented a threefold contrast. I. A contrast between the two men who went to pray: 1. One was at the top of the ladder in church and state. 2. The other was at the bottom. II. A contrast in their prayers: 1. One prayed with a good eye on himself, a bad eye on his (brother, with no eye for the Lord at all. 2. The other looked to God alone. J'2tllovis G. Chappell, g1; Village m, pp. Git-79. 127 III. A contrast in the results: 1. One went as he came, hard and cold. 2. The other went down remade.13 Within these sermon divisions how does our speaker develop his points? Again we see certain patterns emerging. First of all, if his outline is one of the question design, the natural and logical approach is to proceed to answer the questions offered. (See "A Thrilling Dis- covery-Jacob," or "A Woman's Wrongs-Bagar" in the Appendix). Secondly, if his point consists of a statement or a phrase, his approach will probably be that of analyzing the statement or making some observations concerning the point. For example, in his sermon, "A Woman's Fall," concerning the fall of Eve, one of his points is, "One great danger of temptation--it is always in a guise." His subpoints are: A. It is here represented as a serpent. B. In Eden it started innocently--as_a question on the serpent's lips e C..Erom raising doubts the tempter moves to positive assertion.14 Another method of development that one finds quite commonly in a Chappell sermon is what is sometimes called the negativespositive approach, that is, first to clear away what a thing or answer is not, in order to construct afterward the positive position or the answer that the speaker wants to posit in the hearer's mind.. As an instance of this method we turn to his sermon, "'me Village Tragedy," involving the death of Lazarus. One of his divisions, which takes the form of a question, is, "Why was this tragedy allowed to take place?" no answers negatively and then positively: A. Net because of the ignorance of Jesus. B. Neither was it from His powerlessness. lsbhappell, Anointed.tg'Preach, p. 8#. "was, :92 Else arses. no- 113-115- 128 C. Neither was it a mark of a lack of Christ's love for them. D. It was because Christ loved these people,15 and then he proceeds to show how this is so. When Dr. Chappell has his message outlined, there are two further steps to his preparation. The next step is to fill in the outline, which he does by preaching the sermon to himself. He says, Having made my outline, I proceed to fill it in. This I do by preaching the sermon to myself. I do not mean by this that I pro- claim it aloud so that the neighbors will think I am crazy. I simply walk up and down my study and say it over to myself in an inaudible voice. Having done this till I have it well in mind, till I can look dggn it as one can look down a hallway, I then write it word for word. His next step is to put the sermon down in writing word for word, a practice which he highly recommends. Every minister ought to write his sermons in full. How he writes them is of no great importance. In my younger days I used to write mine on a typewriter. In later years I have taken the easier method of dicta- ting them to a stenographer. No more is the time of writing of funda- mental importance. I always prepare a sermon before writing. There are others who compose as they write. Both methods are good. Hewever, I believe that the former is the better. This is the case because a sermon, being a spoken address, ought to sound spoken.17 Admittedly such a system takes time-it is not quickly done-~but the sermon thereby gets into the minister's "system" and mind better, enabling him to preach more readily without notes if that is his method, and it is Chappell's way. Having considered the matter of odr speaker's ideas on the outlining of a sermon and how he proceeds to develop that outline, we turn now to the matter of introductions and conclusion; to the sermons. Concerning 151bid.. pp. 13-17. 16Chappell, Anointed £2_Preach, p. 85. 17Ibid. 129 introductions he has not much specifically to say; yet he has a few sug- gestions for us. If we may consider the reading of the Scripture as part of the introduction, he does have some advice here. He urges that the minister give attention to the reading of the Scripture. He observes that the reading of it by some ministers is a thing of beauty and impres- siveness, while by some others the reading is marked by dullness.18 For himself he decidedly prefers to present the passage from memory, and that for at least two reasons: (I) he feels he can present the reading better in this manner; and (2) it is a good "attention" step speechdwise, as well as a method of building‘gthg§, He writes, I always read my Scripture lesson from memory. I find that by so doing I secure an attention to this important part of the service that I could not secure otherwise. In addition it is good psychology. There is an impression of thorough preparation which, whether deserved or not, makes the bearer a little more willing to give a whole-hearted attention.1 In the matter of personal remarks at the outset of the sermon, Chappell suggests that there are some remarks which are appropriate and acceptable, and also warns that there are those of another kind that are unacceptable. As to the fermer he states, "There is a type of personal experience that is always in order. Many a time what we say about ourselves, especially if we are bearing witness to the saving and guiding power of God in our own lives, will be at once the most interesting and the most helpful part of our sermon."20 If it is positive, the testimony of one's experience is in order. It serves the rhetorical purposes of building 18Ibid., p. 9#. 5" 19Joseph Fort Newton (ed.), if _I 2192 Only _O_n_e_ Sermon _t_o_ Prefle, p. 1 . 20 Chappell, Anointed.tg_Preach, p. 91. 130 ethos and of getting and holding attention; and serves the spiritual purpose of encouraging hearers by the experience of another. Of the undesirable kind of personal remarks, he identifies them thus: But the talking about ourselves to which I refer is the prefacing of our sermon by telling either the tragedies or the triumphs of the previous week. Sometimes we parade our tragedies. we have been having a hard time, and we are eager for our congregation to know it. Recently we have had to sit up with a man who was dying, and we feel half dead from loss of sleep. . . . Be the cause what it may, we have come to the hour of service with a depressing sense of inadequacy. Not only so, but this we have done through no fault of our own. Hence we feel that we have a right to makslexcuses. But such a course is a mistake. Chappell believes that to begin a sermon with apologies has two negative effects. First, it is a catering for sympathy, a way of saying to our people, "Pity me," which he says is not quite manly: and secondly, it kills whatever expectancy the peOple may have brought to the service."22 "Therefore, since excuse-making is at once an appeal for pity and a foe of expectancy, we should never begin our service with an apology."23 On the other hand, neither is a congregation nourished by the boasting of a speaker. "Then we are sometimes tempted to parade our triumphs. . . . We have met some very important people. . . . But our people are seldom edified by our boasting unless that boasting be in the Lemuz“ One more bit of advice which Dr. Chappell would give us here Pertains to the length of introductions. In the Hassanetta Springs inter- View he told this investigator that he does not believe in long introduc- tions. His reasoning springs from a psychological motivation-he fears —__ 21Ibid. ZZIbid. , p. 92. 2‘! 23mm. Ibid. 131 that we may lose our people if we delay getting into the message or body of the sermon.25 He says, "I get into the body of it as soon as I can. . . You have to hit the ground a running. Then stop when you're through." In practice our speaker very well follows his advice. Perhaps it is not a matter of his following his advice, for very likely he de- rived his theory from his practice, the latter being first. Thonssen and Baird believe that this is the natural chronological order. In com- menting on the three elements of an art-practice, theory, and criticism-- they say: The effect of these three elements on each other follows a certain chronology. Undoubtedly there was speechmaking-—practice--before there was an art of speaking. But once the art is systematizgg, the theory serves as the basis for further practical application. And so it is with Chappell-out of his speaking his principles were de- rived. In his practice, for example, he largely omits personal references from his introductions, both positive and negative, and secondly, he makes his sermon introductions very brief. Ole Aarvold, who made a study of a large number of Chappell's sermons, concluded that about thirty per cent of them did not have a formal introduction. "The preacher starts these sermons with the first main division of the sermon preper. Sometimes this first division begins informally with an introductory word or two, although such may not be set apart from the division of the message proper."27 From an examination of Chappell sermons one would find that seldom in the introduction does he use "attentionpgetting" material merely as an aSSee Appendix II. 26 27Ole Aarvold, "Clovis G. Chappell: The Man and His Message," (Un- publtzhzd thesis for Master of Theology degree, Asbury Seminary, 1953), Pp. ’ 5. Thonssen & Baird, 22, 235,, p. 16. 132 end in itself. Seldom does he use a sensational illustration in this part of the sermon, and largely missing is the striking statement. Care- ful investigation for this study has found two types of introductions most prevalent: (l) orientation remarks intended to prepare the minds of the hearers for what was to follow: and (2) the setting up of a narrative background or the verbal painting of a scene in which the sermon was to take place. This is in harmony with other homiletical theory, such as that which John A. Broadus gives us: "The introduction has two chief objects: to interest our hearers in the subject, and to prepare them for understanding it."28 As an instance of a Chappell introduction using orientation re- marks to prepare the minds of his hearers, we cite the introduction to his sermon, "The Village Tragedy." "Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead." For most of us that is the last word. There is nothing else to be said. The worst possible has already happened. The grimmest of all grim tragedies has already been enacted. Lazarus is dead--the nurse may now go home. The physician, faithful to the last, may return to his office. Medicines, poultices, ministering hands are no longer needed. Disease has done its grim work-Lazarus is dead. What an old tragedy this is, how commonplace. When the hearse passed you on the street yesterday you hardly turned your head. It is soon forgotten. It is so usual. It is so ordinary. And yet how new is this tragedy. How it comes to you with a freshness of pain and heart- ache and despair as if you were the first and only one that had ever looked into the glazed eyes of somebody you loved.29 This also illustrates the brevityfof his introductions. In this case it contained two paragraphs, covering a little more than one-half a P380 in printed form. The second kind of introduction commonly used by him is that which aamaus, 22¢ Silo. Pa 1010 ”Chappell, gig Villggg m, p. 11. 133 we have referred to as the painting of a scene or the setting up of a background against which the message is presented. As an example of this approach the sermon, "A Woman's Wrongs--Hagar," affords an excel- lent illustration: The scene of this story is a desert. As far as the eye can see the weird waste stretches. Above it the heat specters dance, and here there the scorching sands drift in whirling eddies as the winds play with them. From out of a hot and copper sky the sun shoots its arrows of fire. . . . Suddenly that silence is broken. There is a low moan followed by the abandoned sobbing of a woman. She is weeping as only those weep whose hearts are broken. As we hurry forward, we find a lad lying under one of the scraggy bushes. His lips are cracked. His tongue is swollen. His eyes are bloodshot. He is weakly calling for water. Over there a bowshot away sits a woman, his mother. Her back is turned upon her boy. She has not the heart to see him die. . . . At her feet is a water bottle as dry as the sands of the desert. The only moisture in all the wide waste is the hot tears that flow down her swarthy Cheekse Why is she sitting here? She is not waiting for help. She is waiting for death. She has lost her way. Weary hour upon weary hour she has tramped in the trackless desert to no avail. Her water supply has given out. Her strength has failed. Her hope has died. And now, utterly spent, she sits upon the hot sands headless of the fiery rays of the sun andjgigis herself to an abandon of grief as she waits for ! ghastly “3th. His conclusions, like his introductions, though considered impor- tant, are seldom long. Again they are similar in that these divisions are sometimes not very evident. Aarvold, who has made a survey of a large number of this speaker's messages, reports: A study of the conclusion to a Chappell message reveals that the preacher here does not always sharply delineate, as in the introduction. There are instances in both his earlier and later sermons where no formal conclusion is used. . . . It seems that Dr. Chappell intends in these instances hat the last division shall take care of any final considerations. 3OChnppell, Sermons 22 92.3 Testament Characters, p. 50. 318ee Appendix. II. 32m01d' 92s git-e, Po 5].. 134 An examination of the outlines included in the Appendix reveals four common kinds of material commonly found in the conclusions: (1) an appeal or exhortation, (2) an illustration, (3) a quotation, perhaps from a Scripture passage, poem, or hymn; or (h) a review of the points or main thoughts. One of his sermon conclusions that contains the two elements of 'resume' and appeal is found in the sermon, "A Glimpse of the After Life." Resume': So the conclusion of the whole matter is this: Forever you are going to live. Forever you are going to be your- self. You are going to have to keep house with yourself for all eternity. Forever you are going to remember. Forever you are going to enjoy or suffer the destiny that you make for yourself while in this life. If it sounds foolish remember it is the foolishness of Him "who spake as never man spake." If it seems heartless, remember that it is the heartlessness of Infinite Love. Remember, too, that though some men are lost, no man needs to be lost. Appeal: {Every man can be saved if he will. This minute you can be saved if you will only be wise enough and brave enough to make a right choice. "Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." Will you come? Will you come now? To summarize this section, Chappell believes strongly in outlining a sermon, that it should have direction and destination. This is bene- ficial for both speaker and hearers. His divisions are almost always derived from.bis text or the context. The number of points is variable, usually three or four. These are usually either statements or questions. He usually develops the points by analysis of the statement, answering the question, or utilizing the negative-positive approach. His introductions and conclusions are usually brief, and at times may appear to be missing. His introductions are largely free of any per- sonal references and attention-getting material. They are usually of two kinds-either containing orientation remarks about the theme, or presenting ”Gumbo Pl: M m. pp. 105,106. 135 the narrative background. His conclusions usually consist of appeal, illustration, review of points, or quotation, or a combination of these. Ho believes in stopping when the goal has been reached. Style-Theory and Practice Sty}: in rhetorical terminology refers to that constituent of rhetoric concerned with matters of language, with the phrasing of the selected and arranged materials. It embodies word choice and word com- position. According to Hugh Blair, style is "the peculiar manner in which a man expresses his conceptions, by means of Language."34 Homiletics is in the mainstream of traditional rhetoric in re- garding words as having a purely functional purpose. They are the neces- sary garb in which men's thoughts appear, but it is the thought rather than the dress that is to be seen. Attention is focused upon what language dggs, rather than upon what it 2&335 Quintilian, one of the big three of ancient rhetoric, counsels, Let the greatest possible care, then, be bestowed on expression, provided we bear in mind that nothing is to be done for the sake of words, as words themselves were invented for the sake of things, and as those words are the most to be commended which express our thoughts best, and produce the impression which we desire on the minds of the judges. Henry Ward Beecher has well described the place of style in Preaching in his gals Lectures 9g Preaching: In general, it may be said, that is the best style which is the least obtrusive, which lets through the truth most nearly in its abso- lute purity. The truths of religion, in a simple and transparent style, 3“Hugh Blair, Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres (London: william Togg, n.d.), p. 103. 35ThOnssen and $1“, 22. 223-0, Po 405. 36Quintilian, Institutes gf'Orator , trans. by J. S. watson (London: 1856), VIII, _In't'ro' d"., 32-3. 136 shine as the sunlight on the fields and mountains, revealing all things in their proper forms and natural colors; but an artificial and gorgeous style, like a cathedral window, may let in some light, yet in blotches of purple and blue that spot the audience, and produce grotesqueness and unnatural effects.37 A brief analysis of style will assist our study of Chappell on this point. As to the elements of good style, Thonssen and Baird state that there are three fundamental constituents of style: (1) Choice of Herdso-that the individual words communicate the thought intended by the speaker and best accomplish his particular task; (2) Composition-dwhich has to do with the orderly arrangement of the words in sentences; and (3) Embellishment--whose primary function is to adorn and elevate through the use of figures of speech.38 The qualities of a good style that have been quite accepted by those of the classical tradition are: correctness, clearness, ornate- ness, and appropriateness. Dr. Chappell's stated views on a preacher's "style" are very limited. His assertions have mostly to do with the quality of clarity and relate to his emphasis on simplicity. He believes that simplicity and clarity are closely related. In Anointed £2_Preach he writes, No longer are people going to come to our churches in large number just to puzzle themselves over what under the sun we are talking about. . . . The modern minister is speaking to the best educated congregation the world has ever known. They are people, therefore, who know enough to appreciate simplicity:5 He does not accept the higher level of education prevalent today as an encouragement to profundity on the part of the preacher, but rather that BVBenry Hard Beecher, Yale Lectures 22_Preaching, First Series, p. 228. 38Th 39Chappell, Anointed §2_Preach, p. 54. onssen and Baird, 92. 233., pp. #17419. 137 simplicity is even more appreciated. Consequently, Chappell has little patience with those ministers who wish to speak loftily, using theological and other scientific terms, regardless of the comprehension of the hearers. The older I grow the more impatient I become with the preacher who is deliberately obscure. Remember that anybody can muddy the water, but it takes real thought and study to speak of the deep things of God with simplicity. I used to have a friend who seemed to be possessed of the conviction that the vocabulary of the pulpit was a thing en- tirely apart, that the moment he stood up to preach he ought to employ a totally different language from that which he used outside the pul- pit. Therefore he reveled in big and unusual words. . . . If the minister is to be helpful, then th 80° whom he is seek- ing to help must understand what he has to say. Concerning Chappell's goal of simplicity and clarity, he says of the minister, "He will so speak, not only that the bright and attentive can understand, but that even the dullest of his congregation cannot help but understand.“1 This is very close to one of the principles of Quin- tilian, who wrote, "He must, therefore, take care, not merely that he - may understand us, but that he may not be able not to understand us."h2 Turning now to a consideration of Chappell's own style in preach- ing, we find that he appears to be very successful from the standpoint of simplicity and clearness. Andrew W. Blackwood studied a number of Chappell's sermons from a "reading" point of view rather than a "heard" point of view, and wrote, "The diction of these messages proves to be that of a man in the street. ""3 N ADruid" pp. 55,56. “1mm, p. 56. ”Quintana, 92. £13., VIII, 2, 22.4. hidndrew U. Blackwood, Preachin in Time of Reconstruction, (Great Neck, New York: The Pulpit Press, 1 S , p. 37. 138 A seminary student at Huntington College conducted a survey by way of a questionnaire in 1966 involving four prominent American preachers, among them being Clovis Chappell. Parishioners in Dr. Chappell's last pastorate (First Methodist Church, Charlotte, North Carolina) were polled on a number of facets of his pulpit ministry.#4 Of the nineteen respondents, they unanimously answered "yes” to this question, "Did the pastor uSe term- inology that could be understood by teenagers and non-college persons as well as the learned?” This was considered by them as being one of Chap- pell's strong points. Concerning his simple style, some of the respondents volunteered comments, such as: (1) "He was grand and even a small child could follow him as he gave so many personal remarks." (2) "This was one of his strong points. He could rival the late Franklin D. Roosevelt in getting a message across." (3) "Great sermons that everybody could understandflfl5 Eggigg.g£“!gg§§, Looking at the factor of word choice, one finds our speaker turning to words of the simpler sort, those that are of fewer syllables, words of Anglo-Saxon origin, non-technical words, and rarely a foreign word. In discussing botany or astronomy, he uses common des- criptives and designations and almost never scientific labels. He uses an average amount of descriptive words, such as adjectives and adverbs, but he does not load up his sentences with qualifiers. Nevertheless, he does turn to words or phrases with emotional connotations. Some examples are: “Howard F. Cherry, "Preaching Elements of an Effective Ministry," (thesis for Bachelor of Divinity degree, 1966), Appendix D. ”Ind. 139 disease has done its grim work her winsome face a cool, sweet place their darkest day an ugly wound a sinking of the heart trite encouragement radiant with joy Cogpgsition. Chappell specializes not only in the simple word_ but also in the short sentence. In an examination of the sentence struc- ture of his sermons this investigator was impressed with their uninvolved composition and with their brevity. After a spot check of several para- graphs in a variety of sermons, it was found that his sentences usually average between one and one-and-one-half lines on the printed page-- usually averaging less than fifteen words to the sentence. Another sentence form he frequently uses is that of the rhetorical question, frequently appearing in a series. An example is, What must you do in order to succeed, . . 2 flew may you be a blessing? How did Dempsey learn to fight? He worked at it. How did Sir Halter Scott learn to write? He worked at his job. HOw will you learn to be a Christian? How shall you cultivate in the finest possible way the garden of your soul? Bow shall you help this world, sweeten society and push it a litgle closer toward God? There is just one way-~you must work at it.‘+ Bubellishment. The primary purpose of embellishment is to elevate and adorn the language for the utilitarian effect of making the thoughts impressive and making the message more interesting to the listener. It is not an end but an aid. ”The practical question with which the critic must deal in appraising the embellishment of a speech is: Do the tropes con- tribute to the speaker's aim.and object?!”7 Chappell at times adorns his sermons with these "jewels," yet not with a frequency to call attention to itself. He often indulges in dramatic #6 #7 Chappell, _l'_h_e_ Village Tra d , p. 185. Thomsan and &ird. 2E. gins-e. p. 1’23. 1#0 personifications and metaphors and occasional similes. Among those which the author of this study has observed are the following: "One day ill-mannered Death walked in with his boots muddy with the clay of new-made graves and pushed this self-centered, feasting man out into his tomb." [yacob "wakes all at once to the realization that he has his hand on the la chstring of the house of many mansions." ”a question fragrant with budding hopes." [God] "dipped His hand into the chalice of eternity." "And I saw enough heartache in his eyes to have soaked a world in tears." "A thousand kisses were waiting for him. His coming was the signal for the bursting of springtime upon the hills of his mother's heart." "we hear little of Mrs. Luther as a religious leader, but we know this, that she rocked a Reformation in her cradle." "He yearns to 'kiss our tears into jewels' and change our night into marvelous day." To summarize Chappell with respect to style, we observe that his overriding principle is that of simplicity-constructing the communication on a low enough level so as to embrace as many of the congregation as possible in the scope of his preaching. His goal is to make the dull and listless bearer understand, if possible, and to be so clear that people might not misunderstand. To this end he prefers shorter, easily-understood words, and shorter, uncomplicated sentences, in order that there may be no doubt as to what he means. For the sake of beauty, impressiveness, and attention he will adorn his messages with frequent figures of speech and dramatic statements, however not to the extent of distracting or calling attention to itself. 1A1 Delivery--Theory and Practice Delivery is that division of rhetoric which is concerned with vocal utterance and bodily action in the communication process-everything that the speaker does physically to convey his message. Traditionally this has been divided into the "audible code" and the "visible code." Incorporated into our considerations here will also be the con- stituent of memory, one of the classical divisions of rhetoric, which has more recently drOpped out of major consideration. Hemoria has to do with the mastery of materials by the speaker in preparation for delivery. It embodies thogght memory’and.gg£g.memory. Hhile importance of good delivery has been debated, usually rhe- toricians are agreed that it is a very important element in public speaking. Most will admit that the thoughts presented in a message may not be in and of themselves successful in persuasion. While many would wish that motiva- tion to decision might result from logical proof alone, as Aristotle wishes}8 they realize that human nature is influenced by other factors than rational ones. Cicero, on the other hand, attaches supreme value to delivery. But all these parts of oratory succeed according as they are delivered. Delivery, I say, has the sole and supreme power in oratory; without it a speaker of the highest mental capacity can be held in no esteem; while one of moderate abilities, zith this qualification, may surpass even those of the highest talent. 9 ~ “8"Fbr the right condition is that the battle should be fought out on the facts of the case alone; and therefore every thing out— side the direct proof is really superfluous." --J. E. welldon (tr.)é The "Rhetoric" 2£_Aristotle, (London: HacHillan & Co., Ltd., 1886), Pe22e , Wacem'g Oratore (tran. by J. S. Watson), (London: Henry G. Bohn, 1855), III, . 192 Clovis Chappell speaks in radiant terms of the hour of delivery of the sermon. He calls it "Our Finest H'our."5o He testifies to it as usually being an exhilarating experience for him: "Unless I am very low indeed, I can never look upon it as just another service. It is something so unique that it quickens my pulse beat. I still face almost every service a bit like the war horse that 'smelleth the battle afar off.”51 First, we consider his theory and practice as concerns £232.23. delivegz. Broadus speaks of three methods of delivery-ereading, recita- 52 Some others speak of delivering a speech tion, and extemporaneous. "from memory, from manuscript, or extempore; and if the latter, whether the man spoke with or without notes."53 Chappell strongly recommends preaching without notes, a practice which he follows constantly in his preaching. He is opposed to memorizing, per se, but recommends fixing _ the outline in mind and speaking extemporaneously from "memorized notes." He offers us his rationale for not memorizing the sermon: There are at least three grave objections to memorizing. First, it is expensive in time. In fact there are few men equal to the task of preparing and memorizing two sermons a week. Second, the preacher who has memorized is in danger of falling into the habit of reciting or declaiming instead of speaking from his heart. Third, he is often dogged by the fear of forgetting. To avoid this the tortured soul will sometimes fix his gaze on the nort east corner of the sanctuary and never see his congregation at all. His method, by contrast, is this: "With my outline well in mind I speak such words as are given. Naturally much that I say is just as I soChappell, Anointed.£2.Preach, p. 88. 511nd. - 52Broadus, op. cit., p. 315ff. 53monssen and Baird, 92. gig" p. 437. 5“Chappell, Anointed £2.Preach, p. 86. 143 have written it. Sometimes I feel that I improve it. But I make no effort to remember it word for word."55 His philosophy for using the "without notes" mode of delivery is essentially this: this manner of presentation gives the preacher a liberty and release of personality that he could not otherwise have. In my opinion no preacher can give full release to his personality unless he is set absolutely free from the necessity of reading. This does not mean there are not many manuscript preachers who are far more successful than others who do not use manuscripts. But whoever reads his sermon, however suc essful, would, in my opinion, be a greater power if he did not. Net only does Chappell's method of delivery release the speaker so that he may "pour himself" into his delivery, but it also has the ad- vantage of permitting the speaker to keep a close eye on the congregation for cues he may receive from them. It is well to keep an eye on our congregation. It is especially wise to watch the boys and girls. If they are not listening, the chances are very great that the adults are not listening either. Of course it is possible to speak right on when nobody is paying any attention to what we are saying. Not only is this so, but is possible for us to be blissfully unconscious of this ugly fact.57 In more recent years communication theory has formalized this phenomenon of a speaker taking cues from the receivers and has labeled it "feedback" or "circular response." This is a speaker-audience inter- action which is described as "the effect on the speaker of the responses of his hearers" resulting in "the consequent reinforcement or modification of his own communicative behavior, and its subsequent effect upon the hearers."58 55Ibid., p. 88. 56Newton, 22. 93.1., p. 15‘}. 57Chappell, Anointed £2 Preach, p. 98. 58Jon Eisenson, J. Jeffery Auer, & John Irwin, The Psychology of Communication, (new Ybrk: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1533). P. 275. lhh One of the aspects of good delivery is speaker awareness of the status of the audience, and the ability to adapt to the changing moods of the audience. Another principle in the Chappell homiletical system is that of the speaker's being "natural." This is the positive side of the coin, the negative being that of imitating or cepying other speakers. He states, "'Be yourself' is a good motto for us in the pulpit."59 He has a theological basis for this advice. It is, "we are to be natural because our personality, our gifts are our own. They are the only talents we can use, the only ones for which we are responsible. . . . Therefore let us use what God has given us because it is ours."60 This is based on the New Testament teaching that Christ has given gifts unto men for use in building His Church. Our gifts are varied, and each man should use his own and will be responsible to God for the use to which he has put them. Chappell warns against this strong temptation to copy those deemed successful. . . . after watching others I have become convinced that one of the most difficult decisions that the minister has to take is the decision to be himself. This temptation to be somebody else is no respecter of persons. It dogs the steps of the greatly gifted quite as often as it does the steps of those whose gifts are mediocre. Perhaps all of us are at times tempted tg strike a pose, assume an attitude, use a tone of voice not our own. 1 He has evidently thought this matter through quite well and offers us his reasons for such a warning: (1) In seeking to be another, we be- 59Chappell, Anointed.£g.Preach, p. 99. 60Ibid. 61Ibid., p. 99. 145 come self-conscious. The minister who is trying (by an unnatural brogue or gesture) to be somebody else has to watch himself or he will forget the particular character he is seeking to play. (2) The minister who seeks to be somebody else is always more or less under a strain, thus hindered from being at ease. And (3) In an effort to be somebody else, we are likely to lose in a measure whatever charm we may possess. Naturalness is one of the most captivating characteristics that any individual can have.62 While the concept of humor is related, of course, to the areas of style, arrangement, and invention, we mention it here as an ingredient of delivery. Chappell believes that if this is a part of a man's person- ality and it is natural to the speaker, to some degree this speaker should let this part of his personality shine through in his delivery. Baird lists "speaking personality" as one of the areas that comprise the 63 subject of delivery. Chappell's counsel is, If it comes natural, we need not hesitate either to use clean and wholesome humor. Laughter and tears are next-door neighbors. Humor does not belong simply to the theater, to the movies, to the club, to the lodge, to the home-~everywhere, in fact, except in the sanctuary. There is of course a certain type of humor that has no place there-or anywhere else. But laughter is just as pious as tears. The minister who has no sense of humor is very prone to major on minors. Blessed, therefore, is the minister who has sufficient humor to "sweeten bitter things with gentle laughter.’ Another aspect of delivery about-which Chappell has some advice is that of the spirit of the delivery, or the spirit of the person perform- ing the delivery. This shines through both the audible and visible aspects 62Ihid., pp. 99,100. 63Baird, Rhetoric: §;Philosophical In ui , p. 20%. 6hChappell, Anointed thPreach, pp. 102,103. 1A6 of the presentation. He believes that a preacher should give evidence of earnestness and whole-heartedness. His voice should reveal his earnest- ness, and his physical demeanor should do the same. Finally, let us be in earnest. There is something fascinating about an earnest man. . . . A house on fire is interesting. A man on fire is the most interesting thing in the world. But if you desire to be uninteresting, be halfhearted. The author of the 119th Psalm says, "I hate men who are half and half." . . . The man who stands in the pulpit, if he is to represent his Lord, mu t be a man who in laughter or in tears is desperately earnest. 5 Turning to the two codes-visible and audible--we shall endeavor to describe Chappell's practice in these areas. While personal contact with our speaker is somewhat limited, nevertheless this investigator had the privilege of hearing Dr. Chappell in person in August, 1969, and also many years before that, but too far back to be useful here. The elements usually considered in the visible code are gestures, bodily movement, and facial expressions. we must keep in mind that at this point we are observing "the older Dr. Chappell," whose later appearances may not represent his earlier days of greater energy and vigor. However, even in retirement he can hardly be said to have lost his "fire" and vigor. His manner of delivery on these recent occasions was to stand rather calmly behind the pulpit, at times leaning slightly upon it, with his two hands extended across the top of the pulpit toward the front. Not holding either Bible or sermon notes, his hands are free. He seldom moved from that spot on the occasion of our two observations. His gestures were of the restrained sort, occasionally moving one arm or the other in a mild motion. He gave no indication of being the kind of speaker who would 65Ibid., p. 10A. 147 wave his arms or pound the pulpit. From the survey by Howard Cherry referred to previously, inquiring of parishioners on Dr. Chappell's last pastorate in Charlotte, North Carolina, we have some additional data on his gestures. Of the nineteen respondents, thirteen recorded that Dr. Chappell gestured "infrequently" and six said "frequently," which would suggest thatit was a restrained practice with him.66 As to facial expressions, Chappell's mode of delivery (speaking without notes) leaves him entirely free to watch his audience and to utilize his face for expressiveness. Two of the above respondents volun- teered comments such as: (1) ”His main line to forceful presentation of Eggigl_e§p£gssions that could rival the late Will Rogers," and (2) "effective voice modulation and facial expressions were his mainstay."67 Concerning what is called the "audible code, the usual items ob- served are voice characteristics, such as (l) pitch, (2) rate, (3) in- tensity, and (k) quality, and such other matters as articulation and pronunciation. Several tapes of his sermons are available, again only of the last few years, which assist us in analyzing his use of voice. On these his pitch is variable and not prolonged at any one level. His rate of speech is also variable. At times near the beginning he is more even in rate and deliberate in enunciation, but as he progresses, his rate becomes more variable, increasing at times and then decreasing at times to a pause. 66Cherry, 93. cit., Appendix D, p. 81+. 67Ibid., p. 86. 148 He has good voice control as concerns intensity--capable of speaking forcefully, and again of becoming soft and tender. His voice has a mellow quality about it, making it pleasant to listen to. He has the ability to modulate it very well, and at times he puts considerable pathos into certain words. Excerpts from one of the tapes68 which we include here indicate some words where he put strong emotional emphasis: (note underlinings) "wrecked your 2223,” "getting gig," "Who's ahead? Godfs ahead." "I've had a wonderful $333." "Our blessed Savior would forget that I've ever signed." In the matter of articulation, our speaker appears to have no difficulty in sound production. Occasionally in his conversational way he will drop a final "3." Being a native of the South, he might be ex- pected to demonstrate speech that is more provincial than it actually is. It is only moderately southern, with some of his "r's" softened; but his speech is not as distinctively southern as that of many others from that part of our country. In summary, Dr. Chappell believes that delivery is very important and that a preacher should study to make it as effective as possible. For him it is to preach without notes, but not from memory, leaving him free»to release his personality and to put himself freely into the presenta- tion. He believes that a man's delivery should (1) represent his own natural self, without imitation, and (2) be full of earnestness. ¥ 68Tape of sermon, "Living By Day," delivered September, 196#. CHAPTER VII CHAPPEL'S PRACTICE IN SPECIAL AREAS Introduction Having completed an analysis of Clovis Chappell's homiletical ‘theory and practice, and having placed these principles within the frame- ‘work of the traditional rhetorical canons, we advance one step farther and now examine his preaching practice in certain specialized areas that ap- pear to be characteristic of his ministry. An examination of Chappell's thirty-six published volumes reveals that at least thirty-three of these are volumes of sermons, containing a total of more than five hundred sermons. A survey of both the book titles and sermon titles indicates certain areas where our speaker seemed to specializeo-to continue a certain pattern or a certain emphasis. Pro- bably the most prominent type of sermon which we find Chappell using, and for which he has received some noteworthy mention, is the use of the biographical sermon. Secondly, he often delighted in his pastoral ministry in bringing a series from a particular book of the Bible. And thirdly (and not in descending order), is his frequent preaching from and upon the Ministry of Jesus. One will observe in comparing these three areas of specialty iihat they are not coordinate in nature, nor mutually exclusive, but Jhather over-lapping. It would conceivably be possible to bring a bio- £§raphical series from a single book of the Bible, or from the ministry of ~Jesus. we have an instance of the latter being true in his volume, IFaces about the Cross, which is both biographical in nature and arising lh9 150 out of the life of Christ. Nevertheless with respect to the majority of his sermons these three areas operate independently of each other. Our approach in this chapter will be to select a sample sermon representative of each of these three areas and use the case study method to examine each sermon in depth. The analysis will proceed with an exam- ination of those elements usually considered in the areas of arrangement, invention, and style, with delivery added to one case study because a tape of the sermon was available. The three sermons chosen are: (l) "A Thrilling Discovery-Jacob," a biographical sermon, (2) "The Good Samaritan," from the ministry of Jesus, and (3) "John's Debt to Christ," from a series on a Bible book. Seme reasons for the selection of these particular sermons will be given when these messages are separately considered. In the selection of these three sermons the main consideration was that those selected be one each of the specialties noted above. When this had tentatively been done, two other observations came to light which add significance to the selections. Each of these three sermons represents a different time period in Chappell's ministry-none coming out of the 1920's, one out of the early 1940's, and one out of the 1960's, Which is in his retirement years. Further we find that the selections represent different sections of the Bible-wthe biographical sermon com- img from the book of Genesis, the ministry of Jesus sermon out of the Gospels, and the sermon from a series on a particular book, coming from. the Revelation. Biographical preaching Since biographical preaching is a major style of sermon used by Dr. Chappell, and since it is a distinct type of sermon in a way that the 151 second and third specialties are not, it merits our presentation at this point of a brief discussion of biographical preaching. Andrew W. Blackwood supplies us with this definition: "The biographical sermon is one which grows out of the facts concerning a biblical character, as these facts throw light upon the problems of the man in the pew.":l There are different kinds of biographical sermons depending on the scope used. The approach may be broad and thus present several stages in the life of a man; or again it very often takes the form of an episode in the life of a well-known hero.2 However, a biographical sermon is still a sermon and not the review of a man's life similar to a book review. It is not mere story telling, but the selecting, arranging, and applying of the pertinent facts of the story. Blackwood counsels that with the help of scholarly books a minister can find all sorts of leads-more than he can follow, and he admonishes that "the preparation of any sermon ought to begin with 3 singling out the sin." From the narrative, the preacher must determine what his target or thrust shall be and then move toward it. Blackwood evaluates biographical preaching as a popular kind of preaching. He says, "It appeals to the average man of today. It appeals to his imagination and to his motor impulses. It lifts him out of himself and makes him determine to become the sort of man God wishes him to be. In other words, the average layman is a hero worshiper. "1‘ He offers .‘ lAndrew w. Blackwood, Preaching from the Bible (New York 8: Nash- ville: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1 , p. 52. 2 Ibid., p. 53. 3Andrew H. Blackwood, Bio a cal Preaching _f3_r_ Today (New York 8: Nashville: Abingdon Press, 19 , p. 150. ItBlackwood, Preaching from PE. Bible, pp. 55.56. 152 three reasons for the popular appeal of this kind of preaching: (1). it comes out of the most interesting book in the world, and out of the most interesting part; (2) it is practical, dealing with all sorts of men right in the setting where they live; and (3) it appeals to the imagination-~1t has dramatic power.5 The above author, from whom we continue to derive this discus- sion, lists a number of practical uses and advantages that biographical preaching has: (1) it is a good way to get people into the Bible. "The easiest way to introduce any man to the inside of the Bible is the bio- graphical."6 (2) The biographical sermon enables a man to meet all sorts of situations--he can present via this method almost any problem there is.7 (3) It lends itself readily to the preaching of doctrine. (#) It also is a good vehicle for presenting both personal ethics and social ethics. (5) It is an excellent way to give counseling to young people, for example in matters relating to courtship and marriage. And (6) the biographical sermon is very useful for special occasions.8 However, not all homileticians seem to share this enthusiasm for biographical preaching. A search of John A. Broadus' gg_thg'Preparation ad Delivegy g; Sermons reveals a slighting of this area as a special 'kind_of_preaching. It is mentioned only briefly_§gd that as part of a two-page discussion entitled "Historical Subjects."9 5Ibid., pp. 56-60. 6Blackwood, Biographical Preaching £93 Today, p. 19. 71b1d., p. 121. 8 9 Blackwood, Preachig from _t_h_e_ Bible, pp. 63-72. Broadus, 92. 333., pp. 71-73. 153 U. E. Sangster, the well-known minister of London's Westminster Central Ball, and author of a book on homiletics, recognizes biographical preaching as a refuge for the unprepared preacher or the slovenly one. A second refuge for the unprepared is a Biblical biography. It seems so easy to "get together." A concordance and a Bible dictionary soon shovel all the known facts into a heap. Setting them in order and drawing certain "lessons" is not heavy labor. The people like the method because, in studying an actual man's life, they feel near to life.10 Be, nevertheless, recognizes that it can be a high kind of preach- ing. He states, "The misuse of the method must not blind us to its high and legitimate place in structural types. It is a true method. It is classified best under exposition because it aims to make clear what is recorded in Scripture."11 Among the famous preachers of yesterday who have made frequent use of the biographical sermon are Frederick H. Robertson, Alexander Maclaren, Dwight L. Moody, T. De Witt Talmage, and Joseph Parker; and more recently the famed Lutheran Hour evangelist, Halter A. Meier. 0f preachers of the generation just past, Blackwood puts two men at the top in the practice of this kind of preaching. "Among popular book preachers of our day two men have made the largest use of biographical sermons. Year after year for the past generation Clovis G. Chappell and Clarence E. Hacartney have sent out volume after volume of sermons, many of the best ones biographical."12 This estimate of Chappell is made by a _ 10w. EL Sangster, The Craft of Sermon Construction (Philadelphia: The Hestminster Press, 1951')“: p. 75.— 1Inna. 12Blackwood, Biogafiical Preaching £2; Ton, p. 117. 154 very eminent student of preachers. 'nlough the biographical method may be abused by some, the example of its effective use by many noted preachers should encourage practition- ers of preaching to consider it as a desirable and effective method of presenting divine truth. I. m: "A Thrilling Discovery-M" In the reading and outlining of a number of Chappell sermons, this investigator was quite impressed with a number of Chappell's earlier biographical sermons, such as appeared in his volume, "Sermons 23 91.2 Testament Characters (1925). In addition to the one used here, we con- sidered "The Forks of the Road--Hoses, " which Andrew Blackwood chose to appear in his anthology, _Th__e_ Protestant Pul it, "The Easy Hark-~Eli," and "The Dry Brook--mijah." Some of the reasons for choosing "A Thrilling Discovery-~Jacob, " are: it does have a distinct introduction and conclusion, which is true of most of his sermons but not all; it utilizes a comonly-found Chappell design of using questions for his sermon divisions; it also affords an instance of negative-positive development of a point; and it contains several statements of drama and beauty. It strongly impressed this reader at first reading. ‘ Source 23 _S_e_rm__9_n: Chappell's book, Sermons on Old Testament Char- m. we do not have an original manuscript of this sermon, and further- more if one were available, it would not be an accurate record of the presentation, for Chappell spoke without notes. Nevertheless it is believed that the outline and substance are essentially the same as that Publicly presented, and suitable for analysis. 155 Audience and Occasion: Chappell indicates that he does not know where this sermon was first preached. Likely it was presented to one of his early congregations in the Methodist EpiSCOpal Church, South. Scripture Text: Gen. 28:17c, "This is the gate of heaven.” Synopsis 2; Sermon Introduction: What a fascinating discovery! How full of gladsome comfort! How like the sheltering arms of a mother to a tired and frightened child! Here is a man who fancies himself utterly alone, when, lying down amidst the silence of the wilds, suddenly hears that silence broken by his Father's voice. No wonder he exclaims with mingled awe and gladness:-"This is the gate of heaven." Discussion: . Who made this discovery? The answer to this question is at once surprising and encouraging. It is surprising because you would naturally expect this to have been a very holy man, a man whose hands were altogether clean and whose heart had not been soiled by a single sin. On the contrary he was in no sense a saint. He was a trickster, a cheat, a shrewd supplanter. When we first meet him he is far less lovable than his brother Beau. He is not a seeker after God. He is here because his crimes have made it impossible for him to remain at home. Yet, strange to say, this is the man who discovers the gate of heaven. If this is surprising, it is also encouraging-for the simple reason that if heaven's gate is to be discovered only by those who have never sinned, there would be little hope for either Jacob or ourselves. we all cannot but be conscious of many a failure and shortcoming and many a posi- tive sin. But if Jacob can win his way to the gate, there is hope for us. I have, therefore, this good news: every one of us may come to say, "This is the gate of heaven." II. How did Jacob come to make this discovery? Let us face the fact at <>nce that it was not by accident. It was not by mere chance. Cheap and ‘half worthless discoveries may be made this way. But we do not discover the things of supreme value that way. The woman with the issue of blood who touched Jesus received the gift of Christ in response to her faith. Neither did Jacob make this discovery because he was the favorite of heaven. God does not distribute his gifts on this basis. James and Jehn had not learned this when they requested Jesus for special seats in His kingdom. Jesus said, "It is for him for whom it is prepared of my Father." It is rather for him who has the capacity to receive it. Suppose I would ask some gifted singer, "Grant that I may get more out of your con- cert than any other man." Hhat would his answer have to be? It is for the pleasure of the person having the largest capacity for enjoying music. 0r suppose I would visit a great art gallery and ask the custodian, "I Want to get more pleasure and inspiration out of the pictures than any other man." He would have to answer that my request was beyond his power. 156 He could let me see the pictures but my capacity to appreciate them would depend upon myslef. And of this I am increasingly confident! God is giving us every revel- ation of Himself that we will permit him to give. He is giving us all the spiritual wealth that He can induce us to apprOpriate. His heart longs to enrich us with His infinite wealth. (Quotes II Chron. 16:9) He is eager to bring us to this wonderful discovery made by Jacob. Therefore, if we fail, the fault is not His, but our own. - How then did Jacob come to make this discovery? 1. He came to it through a sense of his own need. Jacob was no longer a young man, but he is away from home for the first time. He feels horribly alone and home~ sick. The very silence of the night terrifies him. The stars, so far away, seem to mock him. They do not seem more distant than the God in whom he has imperfectly believed. Tonight in these wild solitudes he is very sick of soul and his heart cries out for help. 2. Then Jacob cannot shut his eyes to the fact that it is the result of his own wrong-doing. It is possible that he blamed Esau and possibly almost everybody but himself. But now the thought comes home with sicken- ing conviction-~he is a fugitive, alone, separated from loved ones and from God. And I have an idea that he whispered the confession of David, "Against Thee, Thee only have I sinned and done this evil in Thy sight.”_ Now it was this loneliness and this repentance that made it possible for God to reveal Himself to him. when he had come to the end of himself, when his sense of sin had made him sorrowful and ashamed, then it was that God spoke to him and enabled him to say, "This is the gate of heaven.” And it is to such that God is able to grant this thrilling discovery still. If you have no sense of need, no thirsting for God, you will never make it. If your losses and broken hopes drive you to bow at His feet, then this discovery is ahead of you. we come to it by different roads. Sometimes it is the door of disappointment, or perhaps the sickroom, or even the door behind which a loved one lies dead that leads us to dis- cover the gateway to the Father's house. III. New what is implied by this discovery? 1. It means that the spiritual and the unseen have become genuine realities to you. God is now realized and Christ is no longer far-off, growing dimmer with the passing years. (Quotes two stanzas of a hymn) 2. It means also that heaven itself is a reality. we are absolutely (mertain of the life to come. we sing with new and glad conviction:-- "There is a land of pure delight. . . " we are certain that there is a home of the soul as certain as we are of the home in which we now dwell. 3. we also become sure of its nearness. Jacob had been feeling horribly lonely, and that heaven was far away. This thought of heaven far away has somehow found its way into the songs of the Church. I wonder how the poet found that out. There is no hint of it in the Bible. The Bible always pre- sents the spirit world as very near. But what we may learn is that heaven his so close that we may say, "This is the gate of heaven." h. This discovery reveals the possibility of communion between heaven auni ourselves. If heaven has a gate, it is open for the incoming of our PraJBrs and the outcoming of His help. It is open at the end of the journey for*the incoming of you and me. If we fail to enter, it will be because 157 we refuse our privileges. Every man, woman and child who will may enter. It should not be hard for us to believe this. Lochlin Campbell was a thorough-going Pharisee. His daughter went away from home and broke his heart. Goaded by his rugged Puritan conscience, he struck her name from the Bible. One night she came back home. As she fell against the door it flew open and she found herself in her father's arms. Heaven's door is open to you if you will come to Him and make this discovery for yourself. IV. what was the effect of this discovery on Jacob's after life? Frankly he did not prove altogether true to his vision. It was not until some twenty years later that Jacob became a real prince. Nevertheless this experience did something for him. I. It led Jacob to a vow of consecration. After this he declared that the Lord would be his God, and it implied that Jacob became God's servant, that he did not henceforth belong to himself but to the Lord. 2. It gave Jacob a new attitude toward his property. Then and there he made a solemn vow to become a tither. He acknowledged God's ownership and promised to give a tenth of all God gave him. Jacob was far from being the man he should be, but with all his faults he was miles ahead of many twentieth century Christians in this respect. 3. This experience brought to Jacob a new power born of a new faith in God. Any man who can say, "This is the gate of heaven," is a stronger man. You remember when Elijah was taken home to heaven, how a number of prophets were beating about the hills, saying, "where is Elijah?" But it was Elisha who said, "where is the Lord, God of Elijah?" and he was the one with power to work wonders. The man who is able to say, "This is the gate of heaven," has a strength to which the man without this experience is a stranger. Conclusion: Here is an experience full of richness, helpfulness, and joy. It was an experience possible in the dim centuries before Jesus came. It is far more possible now, for we are living in the age of the Holy Spirit. we are living in a time when every man, regardless of his circumstances, may come into a saving and satisfying sense of God. A broad stairway stretches right from your feet into the open doorway of heaven. May we claim our ‘ privileges, not only for the sake of our own needy lives, but for the sake of those about us whose needs are great as our own. Sermon Arrangement-~ In a broad sense, when one considers the area of arrangement, the following matters are considered: "the emergence of a central theme, the general method of arrangement adopted for the speech, and the order in which the parts of the discourse are developed."13 lBThOnssen and Baird, 230 C_i_t_e, p. 3930 158 There is a thread which Chappell has consistently woven through- out this sermon (the emerging theme)-—it is the note of discoveny. It is the key word in his sermon title; an air of discovery pervades the opening sentences of the introduction: and the word "discovery" occurs in each one of the sermon points. This is the uniting theme which occurs throughout and ties it all together. The sermon has a well-delineated outline, with a distinct intro- duction and conclusion, and each of the sermon divisions is made obvious. Further observations about the structure will be made when the section pertaining to "Body" is considered. Introduction. As always, Chappell opens with a biblical text, announced at the very front of the message. In this case it is very brief, consisting of a portion of a verse and totaling six words. The whole introduction is relatively brief, consisting of fourteen printed lines. His stated theory was found to be that of short introductions and rapid movement into the body of the message}!+ An atmosphere of excitement pervades most of the opening sentences; in fact, many of them are ex- clamations. This is in harmony with his theme of "discovery." The other element which we note in the nature of the introduction is that the preacher is being very descriptive; and using vivid words, he pictures this lonely man, who is both "alone, yet not alone." Chappell effectively creates for his hearers the mood of a lonely man who is about to make a discovery. £291. The outline for this sermon is very precisely set forth; and in this case each division head consists of a question, these divisions lkSee p.131 of this thesis. 159 being coordinate in nature. The major headings are: I. who made this discovery? II. How did Jacob come to make this discovery? III. what is implied by this discovery? IV. what was the effect of this discovery on Jacob's after-life? It is characteristic of Chappell to use this question method to open up his subject, although in certain other sermons some of the headings will be questions and some will be statements. The outline is a good one in that each division carries forward the theme of "discovery;" also a comparison of the division heads with the sermon title reveals that each point of the sermon is a legitimate out- growth of the subject and deals with an aspect of it. Another worthy observation is that each point is based on the biblical narrative and is derived from the context. This is characteristic of our speaker, and this approach is the method of a textual sermon. Broadus distinguishes two varieties of a textual sermon, one of which applies here. In a text-sermon, according to Broadus, "A single subject is drawn from the text and stated, whether formally or informally, and then is discussed under such divisions as the text furnishes."15 The order pursued in the questions is partially that of the basic questions that journalism often uses. Invthe case of our sermon the questions in essence are: who did it? How did it happen? what is the significance of what happened? The third and fourth questions of the outline deal with the significance of the discovery and logically belong last. ISBroadus, 22. 21:20, Do 137. 160 In the development within each division, the natural method if the point takes the form of a question is to proceed to answer the question. This particular sermon affords us a quite common Chappellian technique by way of developing a point by means of the negative-positive method. Frequently he answers a question by first of all asserting what a thing isn't before asserting positively the answer he wants to convey. Under point number two (”How did Jacob come to make this discovery?") Chappell proceeds in this manner: A. He did not make it by mere accident. B. Neither because he was the peculiar favorite of heaven. C. It depends upon the capacity of the receiver. D. It came through a sense of his own need. E. It came through a sense of his own erng-doing. Between the main divisions of this present sermon there are no obvious transitions. He concludes one point and promptly announces the next. However, within point number three, he ties each sub-point neatly together with "not only. . . referring to the past point , but also. . . indicating the next point ." ' As was noted earlier, there is a difference between a biographical review and a biographical sermon, the latter having practical applications. An examination of this sermon text reveals that at the close of every one of the four points of this sermon there is a practical application--some- thing personal is beamed to the hearers. Jacob's experience is made Mug 1:2 221:. For example, at the close of the third division we hear, "Heaven's door is open to you. If you will only dare to come to Him, you will make that discovery for yourself." The theme of "discovery" 161 continues in the applications. Conclusion. Here we find a clear-cut conclusion introduced by the words, "Here, then, is an experience full of richness, full of help- fulness, full of joy." In the conclusion Chappell joins together the past and the present--takes the narrative of the past and trains its rays on the present life situations of people. He shows people how these truths fit their lives today. The conclusion is a little different than that found in many of his sermons in that there is no direct appeal to decision, but an indirect appeal to "claim our privileges" for the sake of "our own needy lives" and for others. There is no resume or concluding illustration in this conclusion. Sermon Invention Rhetoricians of the classical tradition have usually distinguished the materials of invention into two classes, non-artistic materials, and artistic materials, i.e., those that are not molded by him but are ready- made for his use, and those that are of the speaker's artistry, respectively. Hance, Ralph, wiksell in their speech text Principles 23's eakin , say of the latter kind, "Several kinds of materials of development are ready- made-that is, they exist in fact and have only to be found and used by the speaker: (l) examples of phenomena, (2) narratives, (3) statistics, (A) quotations."16 In the sermon, "A Thrilling Discovery--Jacob," the larger part of Chappell's materials are drawn from the Bible. Since his text is part of a larger narrative, he develops his sermon divisions first of all from 16X'enneth G. Hance, David C. Ralph and Milton J. wiksell, Princi- es of S , 2nd Edition (Belmont, California: wadsworth Pub. Company, 1 9 )Tpe e 162 the material of Jacob's life as found in the Bible. His points are illus- trated and supported from this data. As for illustrations, we have classified six illustrations in this sermon, three of which are taken from the Bible, two are hypothetical (imaginary), and one is from literature. Also he has quoted stanzas from two different hymns. Hence his non-artistic materials in this sermon have been drawn from the Bible, from hymhody, and from literature, with very little from personal experience. Taking a closer look at quotations, they are a form of non- artistic material used by speakers. Chappell makes occasional use of these. In the sermon presently under study the usage is quite limited, the sermon containing two quotations from hymns and three verses from the Bible, other than the context of Jacob's life. Compared to the practice of many "Bible" preachers, this would be infrequent appeal to the Scriptures. These three instances are single verses or less, given without identifying the location. They are not set off in the manner commonly associated with Billy Grahame—"The Bible says. . . ," but slipped unannounced into the text. From the limited use of biblical quotations in this particular sermon, Chappell is not depending very heavily upon proof texts for his supporting material. Of these three instances of biblical quotation, two of them stand in the position of proof texts and the other as an allusion. Turning now to the artistic materials, these are also known as the "modes of persuasion," arising primarily from the personality and ability of the speaker. These materials are created from the non-artistic materials and added to them. They are usually considered to be three in number: (1) nnnnnf-ethical proof or source credibility; (2) l252§7' logical proof or reasoning; and (3) nnthos--emotional proof or psychologi- 163 cal factors. Using this schema, we analyze this sermon according to this three-fold division. Ethical 2322;. while personal references in this sermon are few, there are some matters of a covert nature that reflect upon our speaker. The introduction contains no personal references at all, yet two ele- ments found there reflect favorably on our speaker. One is his repeated references to home and mother and father, with evident appreciation and esteem for a stable and happy family life. The other is the spirit of excitement that pervades the opening statements, which suggests that here we have a speaker who is excited about the message he is ready to deliver. As to the components of 222223 Aristotle believed that they are three in number: wisdom (intelligence), character, and good will. With- out straining to do so, we find elementsin this sermon which reasonably match these three items. The speaker appears to be a good man (character) in that he appears to be a defender of God, thus identifying himself as being on God's side. To a regular congregation, predominantly Christian, such a speaker would be perceived as "God's man" (barring any adverse publicity). He presents God as being very fair when he states, "God does not distribute His gifts on the basis of favoritism,"17 and he also ;presents God as being very ready to help us, by saying, "God is giving 'us every revelation of Himself that we will permit Him to give."18 Secondly, he indicates himself to have a measure of wisdom or intelligence about the JBible. In a rare personal reference he implicitly suggests that he has a :tamiliarity with the Scripture when he tells why he rejects the theme of —__ 17Chappell, Sermons 3n Old Testament Characters, p. 62. 18Ibid., P0 63. l6h a certain song ("There is a happy land, far, far, away"): "I wonder how the poet found that out. There is no hint of it in the Bible. The Bible always represents the spirit world as very near."19 This indicates some knowledgeableness concerning the Bible. Thirdly, he appears as a man of good will. Taking the role of a herald he announces, "I have, therefore, this good news: every one of us may come to say with the solid conviction of Jacob: "This is the gate of heaven.'”20 Logical 2322;. Among the materials created by the speaker, but not necessarily part of the reasoning process, four kinds are offered by Hance, Ralph, wiksell: (l) repetition, (2) restatement, (3) comparison, and (#) contrast}l In the sermon under study our speaker frequently indulges in contrast: "On the contrary, the man who made this discovery was in no sense a saint." "when we first meet him he is far less lovable than his brother, Esau." "we may make cheap and half worthless discoveries by mere good fortune. But we do not discover the things of supreme value in that We 1! "There was a tremendous amount of clay among the gold. But with all his faults, he was far ahead of many a twentieth century Christian." "It was an experience that was possible even in the dim centuries before Jesus came. It is an experience that is far more possible now." ‘ "Argument by example" appears to be one of Dr. Chappell's favorite forms of logical proof. He makes an assertionaor claim and then proceeds to support it by example. 191bid., p. 66. 20Ibid., pp. 61,62. 21Hance, Ralph, wiksell, gp. 9_i_t_., p. 95. 165 Assertion: "God does not distribute His gifts on the basis of favor- itism." Example: The Bible illustration of James and John seeking honored seats in the Lord's kingdom.22 Assertion: "The first place in the Kingdom of Heaven does not depend upon God's favoritism. It depends upon the capacity of the receiver." Example: Two hypothetical illustrations concerning a capacity to 23 appreciate a musical concert and the art in a great gallery. Assertion: "It should not be hard for us to believe this" (i.e., that the gate is open for each man, woman, and child to enter). Example: The stoiy of Lochlin Campbell in "Beside the Bonnie Briar msh. H2 Assertion: "But we do not discover the things of supreme value in that way." Example: The Bible illustration of the woman with the issue of blood who touched Jesus.25 "Argument by analogy" is another frequent practice of Chappell's in this sermon. In a sense the whole sermon is structured in the form of an "argument by analogy," for he takes the narrative, the whole context, and places it alongside of our experience and assumes that there is a similarity between Jacob's situation and ours today. In fact, this is the rationale which underlies all true biographical preaching--that the experiences of people in the Bible have something in common with the experiences of mankind today. Some instances of individual analogies are these: ". . . as you might chance to find a piece of coin that some one had dropped or a treasure that someone had lost." 23Ibid., pp. 62,63. 2251181313011: 22. 221:... p.52. aunide, Po 67o 25Ibid., p. 620 166 "But since a trickster like Jacob can win his way to the gate, then there is hope for us, regardless of the stains of yesterday and regardless of the sins of today." "It is encouraging for the simple reason that if heaven's gate is to be discovered only by those who have never sinned, theg6there would be no hope for such people as Jacob and ourselves." Of the more formal types of reasoning, we find fewer instances of this in the present sermon, although there are some. As an instance of reasoning from cause to effect we find this piece of reasoning: . . . you would naturally expect that one who was able to win his way past the things of time and sense till he came to find the gate of heaven must have been a very holy man. You would naturally ex- pect that one who, while his feet were yet upon "this dusty spot that men call earth," got hold on the door knob of the heavenly home, must have been a man whose hands were altogether clean and whose heart had hardly been soiled by a single sin. 7 Cause and effect is present when we consider the underlying assumption that in the economy of God there is some qualification of holiness which qualifies one to appear at the gate of heaven. Hence, holiness is the antecedent cause (or prerequisite), and admission to the heavenly home the result or effect. we find at least one case of inductive reasoning, moving from occurrences to conclusion or generality, in this excerpt: "As we meet together we cannot but be conscious of many a failure and many a short- coming, and many a positive sin. Therefore, if sinlessness were the re- quirement for this discovery, we should be without hope."28 Among the types of deductive reasoning is that of the hypothetical syllogism-that if one statement or claim be true the next must follow from it. In this sermon, "A Thrilling Discovery--Jacob," Chappell has 27Ibid., pp. 60,61. 26Ibid., pp. 61,62. 281bid., p. 61. 167 used several hypothetical syllogisms. "If you have no need, you will never make it. But if there is a need, if you are thirsting for God; if your losses, your broken hopes, your broken vows, drive you to bow at His feet, then this discovery is ahead for you." ”If heaven has a gate, it is for the purpose of communion be- tween God and ourselves." "If we fail to enter, it will not be because the gate is fast shut in our faces, it will be because we refuse our privileges." Chappell is a frequent user of imagination, sometimes in expanding an illustration, sometimes in analyzing situations, sentiments, or mo- tives; and occasionally he will use such substance in the role of "proof." In the sermon division, "How did Jacob come to make this dis- covery?", one of his answers is, "He came to it through a sense of his own need." Chappell professes to analyze Jacob's feelings, and in this case it constitutes the only support offered to the assertion. Here is Chappell's assertion and support: Assertion: "He came to it through a sense of his own need." Support: "Jacob was not an altogether young man at this time. But he is away from home for the first time. He feels horribly alone. Homesickness comes upon him like an avalanche. The very silence of the night terrifies him. The stars in the sky seem to mock him. They are so far away. . . . Tonight in these wild solitudes he is very wretched and very sick of soul, and his heart, if not his lips, is crying out for help.30 Emotional Proof. Under this heading we are interested in something broader than the ancient concept of thos, and are concerned with other psychological factors. Herein we shall be concerned with three: attention factors, motive appeals, and emotive language. 29Ibid., pp. 65,66,67. 3°Ibid., pp. 63,64. 168 Elements involved in getting and holding attention are concentrated more toward the beginning of this particular sermon, a practice which is, of course, psychologically advantageous. The title itself is hardly drab, for it connotes a bit of mystery and excitement--note the words: "A Thrilling Discovery." The Scriptural narrative itself has been one that has fascinated people through the centuries-~Jacob's dream of the ladder reaching from earth to heaven. Chappell begins this sermon with a series of exclamations--in fact six of them, which obviously are psychologically arousing. The first sermon division has a mild suspense within it, in that the preacher delays for awhile, his answer to the question he asks even though the answer is known to those familiar with the story. His initial question is "Who made this discovery?" For a while, he does not state who it is, but says, "The answer to this question is at once surprising and encouraging," and proceeds to tell why before he answers the question. In subsequent parts of the sermon, attention material consists of frequent illustrations and the use of concrete and emotive language. What motive appeals does our speaker use in this sermon? A search reveals that he is appealing to a variety of basic motivations of the honorable sort. 1. A _s__e_n_s_e_ of honesty. Chappell“ appeals to his hearers to face their failures and sins honestly. He declares, "As we meet together we cannot but be conscious of many a failure and 31 32 many a shortcoming, and many a positive sin." And again, "If you have no need, you will never make it." He urges 31Ibid., p. 61. 3thid., p. 65. 2. 3. 5. 169 them not to gloss over their need, but to face it honestly. A sense 9_f_' responsibility for; _1_:_1_1_e_i£ actions. He declares, "Therefore, if we fail, the fault is not His, but our own."33 The dg§i£g_£2£ reality. On the assumption that human beings crave certainties, realities, and tangibles, he says, "To be able to say, 'This is the gate of heaven,’ means that the spiritual and the unseen have become genuine realities to you.”3h The dg§i£g_£g£.immortality (selfgpreservation). Self-preserva- tion has traditionally been considered one of the basic laws of nature. The desire for immortality is but an extension of this. Chappell extols the future life in these words, "We are absolutely sure of the life to come. We are certain that Jesus is not deceiving us when He tells us that He is prepar- ing a place for us."35 The readiness tg.receive help. Though some men are averse to accepting offered help, this appeal is based on the premise of recognized need. He says, "The gate is cpen for the incoming of our prayers. It is open for the outcoming of His help."36 Our speaker speaks to his hearers of offered aid, and urges them to receive it. A sense‘gf stewardship. Chappell appeals to his hearers through Jacob's example to recognize that they do not belong to them- selves, but they ought to become God's servants; and also that their property is really God's, held in stewardship by them.37 33 Ibido, P. 630 3“ 35 Ibideg Po 65. Ibid., p. 66. 36 Ibid., pp. 66,67. 37Ibid., p. 68. 170 7. fippggl_tg courage agg.manliness. "The man who is able to say, 'This is the gate of heaven,‘ has a strength and power to which the man without this experience is astranger.”38 8. Appeal tg_privilege and opportunity. Our speaker in his closing exhortation tells his hearers that they live in an opportune day. "we are living in a time when every man, re- gardless of his circumstances, regardless of his past, may come into a saving and satisfying sense of God. . . . May we claim our privileges, . . ."39 The emotive content of a speech or address may also consist of rousing language and moving stories. One of the six stories occurring in the sermon gives the appearance of having definite emotive purpose. It is the story of Lochlin Campbell, whose wandering daughter left home, breaking his heart and incurring his rejection, only to return at a later time to be lovingly received and forgiven. The story is vividly told: A thorough-going Pharisee he was. But his daughter went away from home and broke his heart. And the father suffered and grieved. Goaded by his rugged Puritan conscience, he struck her name from the Bible. But he could not strike her name from his heart. And one night she came back home. As she fell against the door it flew open. And she found hersgaf in her father's loving arms. Heaven's door is open to you. . . . Aside from this illustration the emotive element consists mostly of vivid words and imagery which would call up a variety of positive or negative associations. As illustrations of Chappell's practice we note the following: "How like the sheltering arms of a mother to a tired and frightened child!" 381mm, pp. 68,69. 391mm" p. 69. “paid" p. 67. 171 "How like the welcoming lights of home to a fear-dogged traveler who has lost his way in the dark!" ". . . wakes all at once to the realization that he has his hand on the latchstring of the house of many mansions." "The longing of His heart is to enrich us with the infinite wealth at His disposal." "Homesickness comes upon him like an avalanche." "Tonight in these wild solitudes he is very wretched and very sick of soul, and his heart, if not his lips, is crying out for help." The emotive ingredients are sufficiently scattered throughout the sermon as not to give an impression that this is a particularly emotional message. There is no concentration of this mode of persuasion in any one area of the message except for "attention-getting" material at the begin- ning. Motivational appeals are varied in nature and diffused in location throughout this message. Sermon Style we turn now to an examination of the style Of this particular sermon. Tb refresh our understanding of the term, Broadus gives us this definition: "A man's style, then, is his characteristic manner of express- ing his thoughts, whether in writing or in speech."41 Thonssen and Baird give us as the three constituents of style-choice of words, composition, and embellishment.u2 We shall use this division as the format for con- sidering style in these case studies. 99.9329. 31; W. Dr. Chappell has chosen those words that communi- cate well--words that are simple, concrete, and familiar. The following observation appears to be justified, after a search of the sermon text, ulBroadus, gp. c_i_t., p. 223. AZThonssen and Baird, 92. 21.3., p. #17. 172 that there is not a single foreign word, nor theological term, nor scientific or technical term in the whole sermon. Occasionally it is the language of the street, yet not undignified, when he uses such ex- pressions as "a thronger," "a cheat," and "a crook," Many of the words and phrases are vivid, colorful, dramatic, and alive: ' a fear-dogged traveler the silence of the wilds heartbreaking loneliness goaded by his rugged Puritan conscience found herself in her father's loving arms A broad stairway stretches right from your feet into the open doorway of the house of many mansions. An interesting observation here is that there seems plainly to be a concentration of vivid and descriptive language in specific areas-~three in particular: in the introduction; in a descriptive passage in the second division; and in the illustration of Lochlin Campbell. When he moves out of these areas, we find a more ordinary style, quite less colorful by contrast. It appears that prior attention has been given to adorning certain spots--that there are highs and lows in the prevalence of this vivid and descriptive language. Occasionally our speaker will indulge in descriptive modifiers, such as "horribly alone," "heart-breaking loneliness," and "sickening conviction," and then at other times his‘style will be very plain. Cogpgsition. One of the distinctives of the Chappell style and delivery is its conversational manner. One finds such conversational expressions as these: "And of this I am increasingly confident." "I wonder how the poet found that out." "You remember when Elijah had been taken home to heaven. . ." 173 "Suppose I were to go to the custodian of a great art gallery and say to him. . .” "Let us face the fact at once that he did not make it by mere accident." Further marks of his conversational style are the large number of sentences which open with "but" or ”and." The sentence structure itself is relatively simple. Chappell's sentences infrequently have more than two or three clauses unless in a series. Quite often he will engage in a series of parallel sentences or clauses. Two examples are, "But if there is a need, if you are thirst- ing for God;if your losses, your broken hopes, your broken vows, drive you to bow at His feet, then this discovery is ahead of you,"l’3 and ”It is open for the outcoming of His help. It is open also at the end of the journey for the incoming of ourselves. It is open to admit you and me." Another interesting observation of his composition in this sermon is that in the two highly descriptive paragraphs, he in both instances uses the present tense to describe the scene, setting the stage as though it were presently transpiring before us. One further characteristic of our speaker's composition is that the style is one of forthrightness and certainty. Things are stated simply, concretely, and with decisiveness, so as to leave little ambiguity or room for uncertainty. He seldom presents two options or uses a "maybe" or leads one through a maze of discussion. His meaning usually is immed- iately clear. “316m. , p. 65. “Ride. p. 670 l7# Embellishment. Aside from his uses of vivid words and occasional dramatic expressions, Chappell utilizes a variety of figures of speech, but the total number for this length of sermon would be considered near average by this investigator. As in most public speaking, the simile and metaphor are the most common. Among Chappell's similes we find: ". . . like the sheltering arms of a mother to a tired and frightened child." ". . . like the welcoming lights of home to a . . . traveler." ”Homesickness comes upon him like an avalanche." Metaphors appear more commonly than any other figure. Some are: "the door knob of the heavenly home" "Esau is little more than a fine animal." "the stains of yesterday" "door of disappointment" "There was tremendous amount of clay among the gold." ". . . canvases where the great masters have spilled their dreams." At least two hyperboles are used: I'. . . who are miles behind this very imperfect saint in this respect." "this dusty spot that men call earth." Chappell's style in this sermon is characterized by simplicity, concreteness, vividness, and descriptiveness in word choice; by uninvolved, forthright statements composed in a free, conversational style; and by a variety of figures of speech, not excessive in number. Summary An analysis of this sermon, "A Thrilling Discovery-~Jacob," re- veals many qualities of good communication. It is well-organized, and the outline is obvious. There is reasonable balance among the various points, and there is logical progress in thought. Both an introduction and conclusion are present and relatively brief. The sermon contains a minimum of ethos factors, which if this were 175 a weekly pastoral sermon would account for a lesser number of personal references. This sermon is more expository than argumentative, hence one does not find much in the way of formal argument, yet the reasoning in the sermon appears to be both logically and psychologically adequate. He does utilize a variety of motive appeals and depends to some extent on emotive language. The style found here would be in harmony with both Chappell's theory and practice. It is simple, straight-forward, and often vivid. By sermon type it is a biographical sermon and conforms very well to the definition of a biographical sermon given us by Blackwood and to the definition of a textual sermon given us by Broadus. It is a typical, well-constructed biographical sermon. II. Sermon: "John's Debt £2_Christ" Dr. Chappell not only delighted in presenting sermons on scores of biblical characters but also on occasions in preaching consecutively from a selected book of the Bible. Among these which got into print, we Agg.zhg_Prophets might suggest from the title that it is from the minor prophets, but an examination of its contents reveals it to be another biographical series on a variety of prophets, both speaking and writing. Our choice of a sermon for this case study lay chiefly between a sermon from Sermons 353! gig Lune; or one from Sermons £52m Revelation, since Sermons £22§ngb_was not available in the libraries and religious bookstores checked by this writer. Of the two choices above mentioned, the series from Revelation seemed to surpass those from the Psalms on at 176 least two grounds: (1) the Revelation series ispa connected and orderly approach to the contents of the book, whereas the volume on the Psalms lacks coherence, being a gathering of sermons based on texts taken from the Psalms, but not in any sequence or progression; and (2) it was the opinion of Aarvold, in his thesis, that "the book, Sermons £EEEHBEZEiET tion, seems to possess superior outlines to those of any of the other books of sermons by the author."45 The sermons found in Sermons £522 Revelation, though textual in their origin, are often expository in their development, since Chappell goes into the context for his materials of development. The preferred approach in series preaching is that there be an interrelationship among the sermons, something that ties them together. Broadus says, "To view every book as a whole, to grasp its entire contents, and then trace in detail the progress of its narrative or argument is a method of Scripture study far too little practiced."l‘6 This connectedness is more nearly true of the volume we have chosen, and not true of the one on the Psalms. After a comparing of outlines and subjects of a number of sermons in the volume selected, two sermons were chosen for outlining--"The Waiting Guest" (Rev. 3:20), and "John's Debt to Christ" (1:5,6). For at least two reasons the latter was chosen: (1) it is more strictly textual and illustrates this method more than do some of the other sermons, and (2) in the fact that it contains some references to current world conditions, it provides an opportunity to study another dimension of Chappell's practice. #smVOld, 22. 22:2." Po “‘9. 1+6Broadu8, 22. 22.2., p. 147. 177 Source of Sermon: Chappell's volume, Sermons £332 Revelation. Audience and Occasion: This series was brought to Dr. Chappell's own congregation, which at the time was the Galloway Memorial Methodist Church of Jackson, Mississippi. The volume is dedicated: "To the con- gregation of the Galloway Memorial Methodist Church, whose gracious response made the preaching of these sermons a joy, this volume is affectionately dedicated by the author." The time was obviously in the early l9#O’s, for there are internal references alluding to events of World War II, and the copyright of the volume is 1943. Scripture Text: "Unto him that loveth us, and loosed us from our sins by his blood; and he made us to be a kingdom, to be priests unto his God and Father." (Rev. l:5,6--A.R.V.) Synopsis of Sermon Introduction: There is a beautiful spontaneity about this text. It is as sparkling as a mountain spring. John is not dealing in cold theological formulas, but sharing his own experience something of his measureless debt to Christ. ”Here," cries this saint with radiant face, "is something of what I owe to my Lord. Of course eternity will be too short in which to tell it all. He has placed in my hands four priceless treasures." Discussion: First: "He has given me a new sense of personal worth. This he has done by giving me his love." Jehn lived in a day when individuals did not count-on1y Kings counted; the state counted; but not ordinary man. Ours is a day when the state dwarfs the individual. What is the individual worth in Germany, in Italy, in Japan? He is worth nothing except as he ministers to the state. Not only is man dwarfed by the state, but also by the bigness of things visible. I remember going for my first visit to South Cheyenne Canyon and pausing under the shadow of the Pillars of Hercules. My first reaction was one of utter insignificance. A certain psalmist felt that same sense of insignificance when he said, "When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers,. . . what is man, that thou art mindful of him?” Yet he braced himself with the fact that God did care. Then oftentimes we are dwarfed by the multitude. What does one indi- vidual count among the millions of earth today? What do we count among 178 the millions who sleep beneath the bosom of the earth, or among the millions yet hidden in the shadows of centuries to come? Yet John remembered that the Master is concerned with individual sheep. The Good Shepherd calleth his own sheep by name. Perhaps John felt dwarfed by a sense of his own unworthiness. Perhaps he had failed and failed and almost despaired of himself. Most men of serious mood have felt this.- When Mrs. Simpson was on the point of marry- ing the King of England, the newspapers said some very unkind things about her, that she had already wrecked two marriages, and would marry the king whether she loved him or not. They made her out to be a rather cheap woman. If she was sensitive, she must have writhed in agony. Yet she could say, "Maybe I am cheap and shoddy in the eyes of my critics, yet the King of the greatest empire is willing to uncrown himself for me. John too was inspired by reminding himself of the personal love of Christ. we need this sense of personal worth today. Many have lost it and think too meanly of themselves. The Puritance of England, according to Macaulay were a strange mixture of self-abasement and self-confidence, yet they helped bring England to the mightiest nation in the world. "He has given me a new sense of worth," shouts John proudly. Second: "He has given me a new freedom. He has loosed me from my sin." Jesus said, "Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin,” but we do not take him seriously. When the writer of Proverbs declares, "He shall be holden with the cords of his sins," we feel he is only preaching. We are not greatly afraid of the bondage of sins. They are such flittle and respectable sins. But that sin brings bondage is fact, not theory. I am thinking of a man magnificent in body and mind, who began to play with drink. He could take it or leave it, but it soon began to toy with him as a kitten toys with a mouse. In the end he looked like a creature of some ghastly night- mare. He had become a bondslave and in that slavery he died. But sin binds in other less obvious ways. One of the most gripping books of the last century is Thg’Count g£_Mbnte* Cristo. One of its most thrilling episodes is the escape of the hero, Edmond Dantes. By means of a tunnel he came to know an old man in a neighboring dungeon. The old man told the other of hidden wealth on the Island of Monte Cristo. When the old man died, they placed his body in a sack to be dropped into the sea. The younger man substituted himself in the sack and thus escaped. He spent the remainder of his days spending his great wealth tracking down his enemies. He was a prisoner of hate.% Jesus spoke the sober truth, "Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin." We become the slaves of habit, or the slaves of guilt, or even slaves of ourselves. "Jesus found me a slave," writes John, "and he set me free." "If the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." The third treasure that Jesus had put into John's hands was citizen- ship in the Kingdom of God. "He found me," says John, "a man without a country, and conferred on me citizenship." With the kingdom he found a Master, One great enough and lovable enough to take captive his whole heart. This citizenship also brought John into right relationship with his fellow saints. He saw in every man a brother for whom Christ died. He was now a member of a heavenly country and living with fellow patriots. 179 With this new citizenship also came a new security. John was a member of a weak nation which suffered much for its weakness. How many small nations of recent days have been trodden into the mud! But now John says proudly, "He has made me a citizen of a Kingdom that cannot be shaken." Finally: "He has given me a position of highest usefulness. He has made me a priest." In so saying, John is not speaking of the priesthood of the few, but of the many. It is for every Christian. John believed in what we call the priesthood of believers--every Christian a priest unto God. What are some of the privileges of priesthood? He has the right of access to God. "He has given me an open door into his presence, declares John with radiant face. Thus he supplies all my needs according to his riches in glory. Besides this he gives me the privilege of being a channel through which his amazing love and mercy may flow to others. What greater service can one render to another than enriching his brother or his children with the treasure beyond all treasures. We can bring them a sense of God. "He has made me a priest unto his God and Father." That is the answer to the highest longing of the human heart. It satisfies our hunger for God and our hunger for service. Not only so, but he has made it possible that out of me shall flow that which shall break up the desert of the heart and set the fields of the soul to flowering. Now since Jesus has done all this for John, we turn our wistful faces toward the Seer and ask; How did you arrive? In answer John leads us to a hill called Golgotha and makes us stand once more beneath the Cross. He was sure that these treasures had come to him through the price of Christ's life laid down. These gifts were not cheap gifts but had come at the price or the Cross. And what was the Seer's part. His part was to receive. That is your part and mine. All we have to do is to receive. But we receive him only by the giving of ourselves. Could there be a worse tragedy than for us to count these treasures worthless of our receiving. John received and sang, . . . May his song be ours also. Sermon Arrangement From the sermons investigated in the course of this study it ap- pears that Clovis Chappell has been a consistent outliner of sermons down through the years of his ministry--by consistent we do not mean stereo- typed, but always careful to structure all of his messages, and the one currently under study is no exception. The over-all outline is very clear, with a distinct introduction, body, and conclusion, and well-proportioned. First, we note the matter of an emerging theme or a uniting theme. 180 A uniting theme definitely appears to be present, like a colored thread running throughout the fabric. The theme is that of debt, and in this case its correlative, treasure. The key word in the title--”John's Debt to Christ"--is that of "debt.” It emerges in the introduction when Chappell has St. John speaking of his "measureless debt” and also of "what I owe to my Lord.” It arises to tie the four divisions together when John supposedly says, "He has placed in my hands four priceless trea- sures." Each of these four treasures is enumerated at the opening of each division. The theme continues through to the very end, for in the conclusion Chappell has men of today asking St. John how he came by these rich treasures in order that they may come by them too. Introduction. Chappell takes the usual text for his anchor, but in this case it is a little longer than usual, comprising a whole verse and part of another. As to the nature of the introductory sub- stance, it consists in this case of orientation remarks about the text and the subject, some of which remarks Chappell puts into the mouth of John. There are no personal references or illustrations here. There is some ”attention-getting” material here at the outset of the sermon, both by way of some striking words, such as ”beautiful spon- taneity" and "as sparkling as a mountain spring,” and also by way of the monologue in which St. John engages. These will be noted further on in the analysis. There is a natural transition from the introduction into the body, when John says, "He has placed in my hands four priceless treasures," which comprise the four sermon divisions. Body. The outline, as previously noted, is a very distinct one. 181 The points of the body of the sermon are set off by ”First," ”Second," "Third," and "Finally," so the hearers should easily know where their speaker is. The sermon is highly textual in that not only are the divi- sion ideas derived from the text, but the direct thought is retained by the use of paraphrasing. Each point actually consists of a clause or phrase from the text. A characteristic of this sermon is that Chappell highly personalizes it in terms of John's experience (which we shall want to consider in more detail under invention and style), and hence each main point of the sermon is expressed in terms as though John himself were speaking it. The sermon divisions are: I. First: ”He has given me a new sense of personal worth. This he has done by giving me his love.” II. Second: ”He has given me a new freedom. He has loosed me from my sin." III. The third treasure . . . was citizenship in the Kingdom of God. "He found me . . . a man without a country. . . . He conferred on me citizenship." IV. Finally: ”He has given me a position of highest usefulness. . . . He has made me a priest.” As to unity and progress among the points, the order is what we might call "material” order in that the order of thoughts in the text it- self has determined the order of the points. An examination of the sermon points and of the sermon title will reveal a harmonious relationship be- tween these two constituents, indicating that subject and outline are legitimately related. A study of Chappell's pattern of development within the major 182 divisions reveals little that is distinctive except the following tendency (which is quite common with him) of developing parallel sub-points. An example, taken from the first division, is the following: B. Ours is a day that has tended . . . to dwagf the individual. 1. The individual is dwarfed by the state. 2. Man is dwarfed by the bigness of visible things. 3. Man is dwarfed by the multitude of people. 4. Man is also dwarfed by a sense of his own unworthiness.“7 Illustrative material seems to follow no pattern. There are six illustrations. Five of them are found in the first two divisions, none in three and four, and one in the conclusion. It appears to be a matter of using those examples that are immediately available where they fit, rather than having any method of apportionment. As to transitions from point to point, our speaker does not have any pronounced pattern. In the present sermon each of the first three divisions concludes either with a reiteration of the original point or a restatement of it, before launching into the next point. Conclusion. Movement into the conclusion is plainly marked and smooth. The opening words are, "NOw since Jesus has done all this for John, . . ." Chappell uses dialogue in a very attractive way here to introduce the sermon application, by having the hearers imaginatively asking John for some answers. Notice the opening statement: "Now since Jesus has done all this for John, and since these are treasures for which every one of us naturally longs, we therefore turn our wistful faces #VChappell, Sermons from Revelation, pp. 23,2#. 183 toward this Seer and ask him this big question: How did you arrive?"l+8 The conclusion still stays close by the text. Throughout the body of the sermon the "treasures" have been noted, but not the source of them. The conclusion returns to the text, which indicates that it is through the price of Christ's blood that these riches became available, so Chappell has John take us to the Cross to show us the fountainhead of these gifts. The theme of "treasure" is still present here in the conclusion. The conclusion consists of this imaginative illustration of John leading his inquirers to Calvary and an appeal to the hearers to claim their "treasure." Sermon Content The materials used by Chappell in the sermon "John's Debt to Christ," are dug from a variety of mines, yet for the most part they are the usual sources to which Chappell goes for his "ore." Again the Bible is his chief source of material, supplemented by literature, by a fertile imagination, and in this sermon by current events. The imagina- tive portions are frequent, as he leads his hearers into the privacy of Jehn's personal thoughts, or as he puts words into John's mouth and makes him speak for us. A new source that he taps in this sermon is that of turning to current events, which, in the light of other sermons investigated for this study, is rather infrequently done by Chappell. One should remember that this series of sermons was brought prior to l9fl3, probably about 19fi2. World War II is in progress. Two references are made in the sermon to h8Ihid., p. 31. 184 world conditions: (1) "What is the worth of the individual in Germany, in Italy, in Japan? He is worth naked nothing save as he can minister to the ongoing of the state."#9 And, (2) "How many small nations have been trodden into the mud in recent days whose one crime was that of weakness!"50 Again we mention, this is an uncommon practice with our speaker. Another reference to world events was one in the recent past at the time our preacher brought this message, namely, the marriage of Mrs. Wally Simpson and King Edward VIII, approximately five years earlier. In this sermon the preacher uses six illustrations--two from personal experience, two from literature, one from current events, and one hypothetical. In addition there are allusions to Bunyan's Pilgrim and to the biblical Good Shepherd. Several quotations are put into the service of this sermon, namely, an extended one from Macaulay, and six different citations from Scripture. This represents more instances of the latter than occurred in the previous sermon (case study), and in the present sermon the author of the reference is identified in each case, which was not true in the previous study. Ethical 2522;. Turning to ethical proof (that aspect of ”proof” which pertains to the credibility of the speaker), we note the absence of any personal references in the introduction (probably because it is a regular pastoral sermon). However, we observe the presence of implicit factors of significance. Specifically, Chappell starts out from a favorable “guide, p. 23. 50Ibid., p. 29. 185 position by revealing that he is "sold” on his text. He makes no apologies for it but rather commends it. He is in a sense saying, "I have no choice text for you," which presumably would reflect favorably upon the one choosing it. Our speaker is also silhouetted in his personal attitudes and values which creep into his sermon. Again there are evidences suggesting that he is a man of good character and of good will, as well as having some breadth of experience (intelligence). The evidence of the latter is his introduction to the first illustration, "I remember going for my first visit to South Cheyenne Canyon."5l There are several hints as to the character of our speaker, found in this message. He mentions, ". . . will look down upon creatures as frail as I,"52 which along with other references indicate Chappell to be a humble man. In relating the story of Mrs. Wally Simpson he reveals considerable human sympathy and compassion, in not being condemnatory of her two previous marriages; but commenting upon newspaper criticism of her he says, "I am sure she must have writhed in agony."53 His character is further revealed by the values he holds, such as, (1) his disapproval of the servitude and dissipation into which liquor often brings man; and (2) his extolling of spiritual values in mankind as the m m. He asks and then answers, "What can you do for your brother, what can you do for your child that will enrich him beyond all 51Ibid., p. 23. 52Ibid. Also there are references in the first interview (see Appendix), indicating the generally humble spirit in Dr. Chappell. 53Ibid., p. 25. 186 other treasures that you can put into his hands? Answer: you can bring to him a sense of God. There is nothing that one man can do for another that is better than that."54 At this point it would be appropriate to relate Chappell's above-mentioned attitude toward liquor to our earlier discussion of his church, and point out that he is in harmony with the historic position of his church as it was stated in his earlier years when his ministry was developing. Both in this sermon and in numerous others, Chappell shows him- self to be a man of good will and hopefulness toward the needs of mankind. Though believing in the sin of all men, Chappell almost never pictures man as a ”worm,” but rather as one capable of high purpose and triumph through the grace of God. He is always optimistic of what man can become. He states, ”And when John was feeling his own worthlessness to a painful degree, he recovered somewhat by reminding himself of the personal love of Christ. We need this sense of personal worth today."55 Logical 2:222, Among the devices created by the speaker's artis- try, used to demonstrate the "truth" of his assertions, is that of con- trast, or pointing out the difference between items that have some simi- larities. There are several instances in the sermon under study, some of which are: ”This man John is not dealing in cold theological formulas. He is telling out of his own experience something of his measureless debt to Christ." "What does one individual count among the millions who walk the earth today?" "For everyone who fails by thinking too grandly of himsglf, I am sure multitudes fail by thinking too meanly of themselves."5 541b1d., pp. 30,31. 55Ib1d., p. 25. 56Ibid., pp. 22,2#,25. 187 Sermon division number one of ”John's Debt to Christ” is a good example of inductive reasoning. Chappell here uses a series of assertions or claims, each individually supported, which lead his hearers to his conclusion or chief claim. Purpose of the Argument: To show the need for a new sense of personal worth. Assertion: ”Ours is a day that has tended . . . to dwarf the individual. Evidence: The low worth of the individual in totalitarian states, such as Germany, Italy, and Japan. Assertion: Man is in danger of being dwarfed by things--the bigness of the visible. V Argument by manple: Standing under the shadow of the Pillars of Hercules. Argument by Testimony: Psalm 8--"When I consider thy heavens, . . .whatisman. . . ?" Assertion: ”Oftentimes we are dwarfed by the multitude." Argument from Contrast: What is a single individual in the light of the millions who walk the earth? Assertion: Some like John feel dwarfed by a sense of their own unworthiness. Argument from Opinion: "That, I think, is often the mood of any man who takes life seriously.” Argument from Example: Mrs. Wally Warfield Simpson. Conclusion: (For the above listed reasons) "We need this sense of personal worth today.” 188 It is interesting to observe that any real lines of argument are found only in the first and second divisions of the sermon, while the third and fourth divisions are predeomiantly explanation or exposition. Thus this sermon utilizes the two elements names in Thonssen and Baird's statement, "The principal forms of discourse used by the speaker in the logical development of his ideas are exposition and argument” (under- 57 scoring mine). However, there are obvious expository portions in the first two sections, mixed with the argument; but argument, as such, is missing in the last two divisions. This is contrary to the usual order, that explanation should come ahead of argument.58 In this sermon argument has preceded the divisions that are basically exposition. The only de- fense of this would be that Chappell's order is determined not by any strategy of argument, but by the order of thoughts in his text, and he has chosen to develop two points by one method and the other two points by another method. The reason he can proceed in this manner is that basically it is not an argumentative sermon, but a textual and expository one, with argument used in a secondary role. Emotional 2322;. Again we take the broad approach embracing several psychological factors, and look separately at attention matters, motive appeals, and emotive language. The matter of attention was important to Dr. Chappell. According to his theory one of the prime requirements of a good sermon is that it be interesting, and in practice he sought to make his sermons so. While in most ways the present sermon would be considered successful, there is one weakness that a study of the arrangement reveals, and that is a lack 57Thonssen and Baird, gp. _c_i_t_., p. 3%. 58Ibid., p. 3#5. 189 of attention matter late in the sermon. First, there is an over-all approach which we have chosen to call a "personalized" approach, in contrast to an ”impersonalized” ap- proach, which should have significant attention value. Chappell takes the truths of the text and in dramatic fashion puts them imaginatively into the mouth and thoughts of St. John, instead of announcing the thoughts contained in the text merely as abstract statements. The method of many a preacher is to take the expressions from the text and proceed to perform exegesis and analysis on them, but Chappell takes the living approach from the beginning to the end of the sermon, by dressing these thoughts up in a man. The introduction has a number of favorable attention factors, which all good introductions ought to have. He starts out immediately by announcing that his text is a very promising one, and uses these descriptive words to picture it: "It is as songful and as sparkling as a mountain spring.” His next statements assure the hearers that the theme is not dealing with "cold theological formulas" but with human experience-~hence it is an "immensely interesting” story. He uses sufficient illustrations (six) which in themselves have considerable interest value. However, the weakness that we mentioned earlier would lie in this, that the examples are not psychologically well placed. Five of the illustrations are in divisions one and two, with none in three and four, and one in the conclusion. From this it would appear that interest might lag in the latter part of the sermon, where such material is totally absent. The conclusion, however, has good interest value by way of an imaginary illustration with good dramatic qualities, where Chappell, 190 continuing the "personalized" approach, has John lead his inquirers to the Cross for the answer to their question. In the area of motive appeals, it appears especially noteworthy that each part of Chappell's text and each of the four corresponding points of the sermon have a prominent appeal to one of man's several basic motivations. l. 2. 3. M 1:3 M 53223 21; Ersonal M. The first sermon point is "He has given me a new sense of personal worth.” Most men want to feel loved, wanted, and appreciated. Ei- senson, Auer, and Irwin, in their list of fundamental drives, include, ”Human beings generally act in ways that will lead toward their being loved, and the realization of a feeling of being wanted.”59 Thg'dg§i£g_fgg_liberty End emancipation. The second sermon point is, "He has given me a new freedom," i.e., from the bondage to sin. Men not only yearn to be physically free but also morally free from enslaving habits and sins. Thg_gg§i£g.£g.bglggg. The third sermon point is, ”He confer- red on me citizenship," i.e., citizenship in a heavenly kingdom. This is closely associated with the desire for security. An- other of the fundamental drives described by Eisenson, Auer, and Irwin in these words is: "Human beings usually act in ways that will bring about peace of mind, security, and a feeling of release from worry and anxiety.”60 59m 60 senson, Auer, 8c Irwin, _op. 313., p. 2%. Ibid. ’ p. 2%. 191 4. Ehg_gg§i£g.£2£_service. The fourth point is, ”He has given me a position of highest usefulness," i.e., service as a priest in the Lord's Kingdom. This is in harmony with one of the motive appeals on the list of Hance, Ralph, Wiksell, namely altruism, or ”the desire to do good without thought of reward or recognition.”61 Chappell himself explicitly points this out in the sermon: "That is the answer to the highest longing of the human heart. It satisfies our hunger for God and our hunger for service.”62 It is interesting to observe how specifically and clearly each one of the four points of this sermon matches a major fundamental drive within man. The emotive elements in this sermon are fewer than those in the previous sermon, "A Thrilling Discovery--Jacob." Emotive language is more scattered-~no spots of concentration of it. Among the expressions which would quite naturally stir feelings are: writhed in agony unspeakably unworthy wrecked two marriages like a terrible bloodhound the mightiest nation in the world a creature of some ghastly nightmare. Three of the illustrations used are inherently quite moving-~the man dissipated by drink; the publicity about and the contemplated marriage of Mrs. Wally Simpson; and the Count of Monte Cristo--and they also are told in a moving manner. They do not appear to be over-drawn and designed to be too obviously'emotional," but are by content naturally that way. Obviously the references to some of the totalitarian conditions 61 62Chappell, Sermons from Revelation, p. 31. knee, Ihlph, Wiksell, 220 EEO, p0 1170 192 in Europe and Japan, when told to a congregation during World War II, would have definite emotive value, but even in these Chappell does not columniate the oppressor. Sermon Style In the sermon presently being examined we find some different elements of style as compared to the elements found in the previous case study. There are differences in all three areas--word choice, composi- tion, and embellishment. {!2£Q.ghgigg, Chappell continues to use descriptive words such as "spontaneity," "sparkling,” "radiant,” ”heart-hunger," and phrases like "the winsome Christ," and "those rugged heights." Without making a scientific content analysis, the author of this study believes that the use of such words and expressions is less frequent in this sermon than in the previous one. Quite noticeably present are a number of "lively” words. Chappell occasionally uses the words "thrilling" and "radiant," and such verbs as "cries" and "shouts.” For example, "Here," cries this saint with radiant face, . . . " "He has given me a new sense of personal worth," shouts John proudly. "The priesthood that he finds so thrilling. . . . " In this particular sermon one finds a few of the less common words and expressions. For the most part it is Chappell's policy and practice to avoid these. He uses "wistful" twice, a word not in very common use today. A number of times he refers to John the Revelator as the "Seer," which was an Old Testament word for "prophet," but one not widely used and understood except by Bible students. Also two theological expressions 193 appear, one substantively and the other as a passing allusion. He speaks of the "universal priesthood of believers" as the label that is given to the teaching indicated in the biblical text, and in a very passing way he alludes to "theory of the atonement." For the most part his word choice continues to be that of simple words, concrete words, mixed with some descriptive ones, and nearly all quite easily understood. Cogpgsition. The present sermon, "John's Debt to Christ," has a distinctive composition about it, based upon the "personalized” approach mentioned earlier. The heading of each sermon division is not a concise statement of the thought to follow, but rather an expanded statement set in conversation. As an outgrowth of this approach we find two distinctive types of development. One is the frequent use of monologue, in which Chappell has John express his own thoughts; and the other is when Chappell does the narrating instead of John, perhaps in a series of statements, beginning with "he." For example: "He no longer had to walk alone. He saw in every man a fellow citizen, a brother for whom Christ died. He had become a part of a great whole, a citizen of a great commonwealth. He was a member of that group who were no longer. . . ."63 Other characteristics of the Chappell style hold true, such as occasional use of concise statements and a very conversational style. As an instance of terse expression we note, ”Kings counted; the state counted; but not the individual, not the ordinary man."6# 63Ibid., p. 29. 6QIbid., p. 23. 19a Embellishment. Our speaker makes occasional use in this sermon of some very picturesque statements. Instances are: "Pausing under the shadow of the Pillars of Hercules.” Of the living: "among the millions who walk the earth today.” Of the dead: "the vastly greater millions of those who sleep beneath its bosom." Of the unborn: ”those other far greater millions who are yet hidden in the shadows of the centuries to come.” 65 Chappell does not often indulge in irony, but at least one instance is found in this sermon when he speaks of some popular attitudes toward sin. He remarks, ”They are such little and respectable sins.”66 One very effective instance of dramatic figures of speech is this combination of simile and personification: ”He could toy with liquor as a kitten could toy with a mouse. But little by little liquor turned tho 67 These and the other figures of tables and began to toy with him." speech found in this sermon are apt and well chosen, never awkward or crude. Summary The sermon, "John's Debt to Christ," affords us a different sermon type for study, this present one being non-biographical. Though this sermon is non-biographical, however, it is a credit to Chappell that he doesn't by-pass the potentiality of drama and narration. He ties the text to its writer and makes the thought of the sermon live by dressing it up in a man. 66Ib1do' P0 260 551bid., pp. 23,24. 67Ibid., p. 27- 195 Further, this is an excellent example of a textual sermon. Every point in the message is based on a section of the text. Hewever, the sermon is not merely a running commentary, but it is well-organized, having thrust and application, qualifying it as a sermon and not merely a Bible lesson. Because it is obviously a textual sermon, drawing its points directly from the passage, and dealt with in context, it is expository in nature more than it is argumentative, though the latter element is also present. This message has several distinctive features which are not commonly found in most of Chappell's sermons, the most significant, per- haps, being what we have called the "personalized” approach. The thoughts are not dealt with in an abstract and impersonal manner, purely as "truth,” but are placed into the framework of a man's life. Thus the element of drama can be introduced, which is a very good attention and interest technique. The preacher makes use of both monologue and dialogue, often- times having thn speak for us; and in the conclusion dialogue appears when imaginatively the hearers ask John a question. This personalized approach has much to commend it. The other distinctive features are: (l) the two references to current world conditions--a practice which is not customary for Chappell, and (2) the occurrence of a few uncommon words and theological expressions. His choice of words is good, meeting the standards of correctness, clarity, and appropriateness. Descriptive words and figures of speech are natural and appropriate, and they add rather than detract from the message. The amount of this type of material appears to be less in this sermon than in some others. 196 One apparent weakness would be that interest factors are low in the latter part of the message, where normally the progress of time would call for renewed stimulation of listener interest. However, the speaker continues his personalized approach through these divisions as well, the weakness lying in the absence of any illustrations or similar interest- begetting material in this area. III. $325922: "_T_h_e__G<_9_g<_i_Samaritan” Clovis Chappell ranges widely throughout the Bible for his ser- monic material, drawing texts from Genesis to Revelation. If one were to chart on a linear graph, his sermon sources in terms of books of the Bible, one would find a very definite high point emerging over the four gospels. Not only has Chappell's ministry been a Bible-centered one, but it is also a Christ-centered one. His messages are not merely moralistic, but distinctively Christian. It has been his delight throughout the years of his ministry to draw again and again from the life of Christ and the teachings of Christ for his texts and other materials. Hence it is fitting to consider his preaching drawn from the ministry of Jesus as a third area of specialty. As tangible evidence that this is an area of specialty with our speaker, we would cite the many volumes ofpublished sermons which repre- sent the ministry of Christ. An examination of the list reveals that nine of these volumes are based directly on this section of the Bible, taking up such matters as the parables of Christ, the miracles of Christ, questions Jesus asked, the prayers of Jesus, the Sermon on the Mount, the life of Simon Peter, and two having to do with matter pertaining to the Cross. The choice of a sermon out of this large group was largely de- 197 termined by another consideration. It was desired, if possible, to use at least one taped sermon for these case studies, and only one of the seven tapes available had its theme drawn from the ministry of Jesus. It seemed to be a satisfactory and representative message to use--hence the selection. Source of Sermon: A tape recording, made by Rev. Elmer Malcolm at the Nassanetta Springs Bible Conference, Harrisonburg, Virginia, in August, 1964. Audience and Occasion: The message was brought to a general audi- ence (composed of old and young) at the Massanetta Springs Bible Conference, which is sponsored by the United Presbyterian Church of the Virginia area. The conference runs for several weeks each summer and features many well- known ministers of the day, among them Dr. Chappell, who has been on the platform there very regularly since 1923. Christians of many denominations attend these services, and the congregation would be composed of old and young. The presentation being used in this case study was made in 1964, which represents the retirement period of Dr. Chappell's ministry. Many of Dr. Chappell's messages have been used on a number of occasions; in fact, one quite similar to this is found in his book, In. Parables, which was published in 1953. A comparison of these two messages reveals that while the main points of the sermon and also some of the sub- divisions, are identical, a large part of the materials of development are different, with different illustrations, allusions, etc. Thus in that sense the later sermon is not a replica of the earlier one. 198 Scripture Text: Luke 10:30-34.68 Sermon Arrangement Since we are working from a tape recording instead of from a printed text, some details of this study are necessarily different. First, the spoken record had to be transcribed. But because the transcribed record did not have ready-made divisions and paragraphing to assist in the comprehension of the speaker's intended outline, an outline had to be made. It can be said to the credit of Dr. Chappell that the outline was quite easy to make because there was an obvious plan of organization resulting from the sermon preparation. All of our speaker's printed sermons have formalized titles, but this live presentation lacks such. No sermon title was announced at the time of its presentation. The earlier version of this sermon which ap- peared in ;g_Parables bore the title, ”A Drama of the Highway," Fbr the convenience of identification in this study we shall entitle it "The Good Samaritan,” from the parable on which it is based. There is an emerging theme which comes out clearly in the intro- duction: ”Helping the wounded along the Jericho Road.” This theme pre- vails throughout the message and gives harmony and unity to the sermon. The focus of the sermon is on ”the wounded;” and in analyzing his subject, our speaker considers the cause and the cure of wounded souls. Introduction. The introduction to this sermon is longer than what we usually find in Chappell's practice. By actual measurement it comprises one-seventh of the total content. The position of the Scripture 68A Synopsis of this sermon does not appear here, as in the two previous case studies, but will be found in complete text in Appendix I, the reason being that the other two sermons can be found in printed form, but this sermon, being taken from a tape, has no printed text anywhere. 199 text is different in that it does not appear at the very beginning, but after a series of orientation remarks and the quoting of one stanza of Whittier's ''The Eternal Goodness." In another way it is different in that he presents approximately four verses, which is more than Chap- pell usually uses, though it is not the whole biblical story. Further, the Scripture is not read consecutively, but interrupted once for an extended interpolation and again for a brief one. The introduction concludes in a natural manner by the speaker's showing how he intends to apply the theme to everyday life, and citing how Jesus in this parable divides all the millions of people into three groups, which groups constitute the sermon divisions to follow. gggz. This is a traditional three-point sermon, with a clear-cut outline. The points are not extraneous to the context, but are natural points drawn from the narrative. A different approach to this biblical passage would likely yield different points, but the theme which Chappell is using makes the three groups emerge quite naturally from it. They are: I. The first group is made up of the wounded. II. The second group are those who wound. III. Then there are those who heal. The three points are coordinate in nature and have a close inter- relationship. The close tie may be revealed by thinking of the sermon divisions in these terms: "The wounded--the cause and the cure," the three points appearing in this order. The climax order is being used, with the note of healing being the climactic point, and appearing in third position. Conclusion. The conclusion is similar to the introduction in terms of proportion, in that it is longer than usual. It consists entirely 200 of an extended illustration, with a few brief words of application. Chappell tells one of Bud Robinson's stories in considerable detail. The illustration is very apt and climactic, fitting perfectly the theme that Chappell has been presenting. Our speaker is careful in applying his example to set his whole theme in a Christian framework. He makes it clear that it is not kindness alone that he is advocating, but he joins it "to Calvary.” In this Chappell is seeking to be not merely a moralist but a distinctively Christian preacher, relating individual conduct to Christ and the Cross. Sermon Content The kinds of material which a speaker uses will naturally vary from message to message, and often a speaker in bringing the same basic message at a later time will vary some of the materials of development, providing it is not a read or memorized reproduction of the original. The materials which Dr. Chappell uses in the sermon on "The Good Samaritan,” are somewhat different from those found in the two previous case studies; and also the two versions which we have of the present sermon vary con- siderably in terms of materials used. In the present sermon our speaker utilizes illustrations and narra- tions more freely than in some of his other messages. we have classified ten of these items in this message; and two of the narrations are consider- ably extended, consisting of approximately eight hundred words each, or about five minutes of speaking time. These two are a narration of a stormy sea voyage on the North Sea, between Sweden and London; and an account of a story which Bud Robinson related in Chappell's church. These ten illustrations, coupled with elaboration on the Good Samaritan, combine 201 to give considerable Space in this sermon to matters of narration. Of the ten items mentioned, the sources from which they are derived have a different balance, with nine of the ten coming out of Chappell's personal experience (things he has heard or experienced, or persons he has known,) and one from the Bible, other than the initial Scripture. This gives a heavy balance to personal experience.1 While no illustrations are drawn from literature, there are four excerpts from poetry, usually brief and not identified. Quotations are a little more frequent in this sermon, with three instances of these, which are usually used for supporting material. Chappell quotes John watson, Henry Drummond, and a Mr. Woodhouse. Another notable characteristic of this sermon is the large place of humor-~often interwoven with the narration--which will be considered in the section pertaining to emotional proof. Ethical Egggf, The personality of our speaker shines through in this sermon considerablymore than in some others, by at least two standards: (1) there are more personal references here than we have found elsewhere; and (2) there appear to be more instances of the values held by the communicator, which instances suggest him to be a man of good character. Two explanations or hypotheses come quickly to mind for this larger number of personal references: (1) in the light of audience and occasion, Chappell is here speaking before an audience that infrequently hears him, most of whom do not know him personally, hence more personal references would be in order than in his regular pulpit; and (2) probably in published sermons some of these personal allusions have been edited out, whereas we are now considering a taped sermon which has been untouched 202 by editor's pen. That he is a man of some experience is indicated by his travels in Europe; and that he has some acquaintance with literature is evidenced by his several excerpts from poetry. These indicators would constitute a form of ethical proof, that the one speaking is a person with sufficient breadth of knowledge to deserve a hearing. In the introduction, personal references consist only of his per- sonal judgments or evaluations that he has made as he compares the popular estimate of the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son. References to him- self, in the body and conclusion of the sermon, include his attitude toward growing old himself, references to people's state of health when he was growing up, his having been "picked up instead of passed up” by kind people, his being a ”bad sailor," his opinion about television commercials, and his friendship with Bud Robinson. Through these references the hearers get to know their speaker better. Our speaker's character is indicated by (1) his encouraging people to show mercy to wounded souls; (2) his sympathy for colored people and his admission that ”colored folks across the centuries in the main have had 'the hot end of the poker'"; (3) his sympathy for the suffering when he states, ”I've always had a soft and tender spot in my heart for that old king of Samaria," (4) his unselfishness when he objects to a friend's giving him a better bed, and (5) his brotherly love for Bud Robinson, an uncultured preacher of another denomination. All of these things, if sincerely stated, reflect upon the character of the one doing the com- municating. His values further show when he urges involvement and sacrifice in behalf of the needs of man, and condemns the do-nothing 203 crowd; and when in referring to the class of people who heal, he says, ”I want to be a member of that group.” In the latter reference he did not make any high claims, but presented himself as an aspirant. Logical Prggf. The present sermon is basically an expository one rather than an argumentative one--an exposition and application of the story of the Good Samaritan. Yet at the same time the whole is an argu— ment for involvement, for being moved with compassion toward the wounded on the road of life, for showing mercy through tangible actions. It is evident that the entire sermon is an ”argument by analogy," and Chappell so intended it. He explicitly draws a comparison between the Good Samaritan's Jericho road and ours: New this took place on the Jericho road. As you know that's a real road, but there's another road that's just as real, and that's the Jericho road on which you and I live. Everybody lives and travels , the Jericho road. Of all the millions t t are in the world today, everybody is traveling the Jericho road. In the first division of the sermon he makes a list of assertions concerning the different classes of wounded people. Again Chappell's most common method of support is that of example. The list of these five assertions and the method of support follow: Assertion: "Some folks are wounded by being born in the wrong place." Evidence from statistics: "Over half of a world went to bed hungry last night.”70 Assertion: ”Some folks are wounded by being born the wrong color.” 71 Assumed without proof. 69Appendix I, p. 233. 70Ibid. 71Ibid. 20h Assertion: ”Some of us are wounded by natural causes.” Example: The common lot of aches and pains. Example: A woman who constantly complained of being ill.72 Assertion: ”We get wounded by our own choices." Cause and Effect: ”Sometimes . . . we take a positive wrong road. . . . Whenever you take a turning, you've got to travel to the goal to which the turn leads. There's no way of getting out of that.”73 (Wrong choices lead to undesirable ends.) Example: A classmate who lived a dissipated life. Assertion: ”Some of us bleed from hidden wounds.” Example: A king of Samaria who concealed a hidden wound.7z+ In the second division Chappell makes the claim that ”the most dangerous group of those who wound are those who wound passively.” His evidence is an appeal to the authority of Scripture by way of the many parables of Jesus which condemn ”do-nothingness.” we observe in this and other sermons that our preacher does not regularly turn to biblical sup- port. While he does use much biblical material for elucidation, he does not rely upon the Bible for proof texts. Emotional 2322;. Let us bear in mind that these are factors which put the audience in a frame of mind to react favorably to a speaker's message. The elements of attention, motivation, and emotive language are included here. 72.1.1222” We 733.23“ 73%., pp. 2%,235. 7h fluid-9 P0 2350 205 Attention is obtained and sustained in this message in a variety of ways. Chappell uses suspense, humor, narration, and the use of the dramatic, all of which have favorable attention value. Suspense is used at the beginning. Before any subject or text is announced, he devotes several lines to discussing a number of aspects of the Good Samaritan, comparing this popular character which Jesus drew with the Prodigal Son, before ever announcing who this "favorite character” is. He has the audience wondering, ”What is Chappell's choice for the favorite character created by Jesus?” The introduction contains a number of dramatic elements. He pauses in the Scripture reading to interpolate, "If I'd have plucked this priest by the sleeve as he left his duties at the temple and said, 'I understand you're going to attend a wounded man down the way,‘ he'd have said, 'I know nothing about it.'" A few moments later when the priest is at the scene of the wounded man, Chappell has the priest thinking to himself, ”The chaps that got him are up there behind those boulders." The attention value for younger members of the audience is not hard to imagine. Narration and illustration constitute one of the dominant elements of this sermon. If such stories are well told and appropriate, they have positive value. In contrast to the sermon used in the previous case study, the illustrations here are well placed throughout the sermon so as to sus- tain interest and attention to the end. Humor is a rather new ingredient here, as Chappell shows himself to be a naturally humorous individual and is willing to use it in the service of his preaching. He appears to be effective in the use of it as measured by audience response. His humor is the common variety, a mixture 206 of the old and new. He indulges in a bit of sarcasm when he says, "When I was growing up, I never saw a well person. It was kind of a disgrace.” He tells the familiar story of the lady who told her doctor, ”I always feel the worst when I feel the best because I know how bad I'm going to feel when I get to feeling bad again.” He pokes some fun at himself when he says, ”I'm getting more interest as an antique than I am as a preacher.” He has the audience in a gay mood when he relates in some detail his sea- sickness and speaks of ”bedding down the fish for the night.” These and other instances brought repeated laughter from the audience. As to motivational elements, there is a strong tone of stimulation to action through the message. The message is obviously hortatory, and Chappell appeals to both the tender side and the courageous side of men. 1. An appeal _t_<_>_ Egan M and 9333;. He quotes from Watson, ”Be pitiful my young friends, because everybody is having a hard time. Everybody has been wounded.” Late in the message he appeals, ”Blessed are the folks that get involved! That get tied up in every little sorrow, the other fellow's wounds, the other fellow's heartache.”75 2. §2_appgal £2 bigness of heart. Chappell extols the missionary on ship who gave him his bed, with these emotion-laden words, ”He was bigger than the ship, he was bigger than the sea. He had the very bigness of God in him.”76 3. Ag_appgal tg_courage ang_involvement. Our preacher says of the Good Samaritan, "So he bound the chap up, got involved in his difficulty, got all messed up, got his clothes dirty,” 75.1.2140! P0 238- 76Ibid., p. ?36. 207 and by the technique of suggestion he appeals to his hearers, ”Go and do thou likewise.” #. An appeal to altruism and unselfishness. This is the desire to serve without pay or reward. Chappell expresses it so aptly in the sermon introduction, ”This was one of those off- duty duties, one of those wayside opportunities," and then adds, "There's no sharper test that comes to you and me than when we come face to face with a need that literally, or at 77 least officially, is not any of our business.” He makes one who passes human need by feel like a sinner. Aside from these appeals to man's higher self, the sermon has also those emotive elements which appeal to a man's sentiments. Chappell's illustrations in addition to being quite often ”moving” ones, are nearly always relevant, and hence not told just to stir human feelings but to accomplish a dual purpose. In the oratorical use emotional appeals could well be of many kinds, depending upon what was appropriate to the occasion-whether to stir patriotism, to inspire disheartened people, to arouse the apathetic, or to bend self-righteous toward repentance. The emotive materials in this sermon on The Good Samaritan are an unusual combination of humor and seriousness, prompting at different times to laughter and to gravity. The two extended narrations combine both of these elements. The story of seasickness stirs one to laughter; and before it closes, it bends the heart within. Likewise, the story of Bud Robinson is at points hilarious, but concludes on a note of tender seriousness. Some of his figurative expressions are also moving ones. His reference to the colored folks as having had "the hot end of the poker” 771bid. , p. 232. 208 for centuries is designed to stir one's sympathies. He speaks of people who "bleed from hidden wounds,” and of hunger that "pinched and pinched.” In recounting the story of the furloughed missionary who had forced Chap- pell to take the better bed, Chappell says, "I ran my arm through his,” and as their little conversation concluded, our speaker says, "And I. looked at him. He was bigger than the ship; he was bigger than the sea," words that could hardly fail to stir human sympathy and emotion. Sermon Style As in other aspects of our analysis, we find in this sermon some of the same qualities of style noted in the others and some that are more frequent here than in the previous ones studied. Word Choice. One of the conspicuous differences in this sermon is the more frequent occurrence of colloquialisms. A favorite word with Chappell in this sermon, in referring to a male, whether youth or adult, is the word "chap." While it occurs in other sermons, it does so with increased frequency here. Seven times Chappell has used it here, in referring to a variety of men--of the robbers, of the wounded man, and of others. Other colloquialisms found here are: on easy street packed his grip a square meal flies off the handle no use ducking it gonna break up the meetin' Also we find some instances where our preacher makes some interest- ing ”plays upon words." He speaks of the story of the Prodigal Son as being "the most tenderly beautiful and most beautifully tender" story ever told. He catches our attention when he speaks of ”one of those off-duty duties." Combining alliteration with parallelism, he speaks of himself as having been ”picked up instead of passed up.” 209 As usual, many of Chappell's phrases are very descriptive. He speaks of the hackneyed word ”good” as having ”a kind of hospital odor about it," through its associations; yet, he says, it is ”the brawniest of words." He speaks of "whitening tresses," and of ”ghastly terror and horror.” He speaks of one woman with "tear-dimmed eyes," and of another, that she ”drew her mouth down at the corners.” When he says, ”If I'd have plucked this priest by the sleeve,” we see two men vividly standing before our mind's eye. Thonssen and Baird list as the four qualities of good style, correctness, clearness, appropriateness, and ornateness.78 Chappell's word choice in this sermon would rate well on all of these counts. His word usage in this sermon is correct, it possesses clarity, the language is appropriate to his subject and to his audience, and a number of his phrases have an ornateness about them. One of his most conscious goals is that of simplicity and clarity. Nearly all his words meet this standard. The list of unusual words would be short and would probably include these four-~"bilious," ”cadaverous," ”prosaic," and "perforce." These are unusual words for him to use. Cogpgsition. As previously pointed out, this sermon utilizes nar- ration more than do some of Chappell's other messages, hence the composition of it would naturally be different. In this sermon there are several ex- changes of conversation, which he usually puts into direct quotation rather than into indirect quotation. At other times he thinks out loud for people. For example, when he has the priest at the scene of the robbery, Chappell asks, ”What did the priest think of the first thing? and then he has the 781110115391]. and Baird, 9.2.. 21-30, pp. #104160 210 priest thinking to himself, ”The chaps that got him are up there behind those boulders. I've got to look after number one.” This method of composition certainly has an enlivening effect upon the communication. There is also clarity in the composition as evidenced by the fact that the composition reveals the outline rather than concealing it. The sermon divisions are clearly designated in the composition, and Chappell also indicates some of the partitioning of subjects. For example, the signpost of having reached the second point, is, ”Second are those who wound.” Immediately he indicates a partitioning-~“They are divided into two groups, those who wound aggressively . . . ” and a little further, ”But the most dangerous group of those who wound are those who wound passively.”79 Some other aspects of our speaker's style continue to prevail in this sermon, namely relatively short and uninvolved sentences, and an informal, conversational style. It stands in contrast to a formal, high- sounding sermon. Embellishment. Dr. Chappell continues in this message to add limited adornment by way of figures of speech. Those found here do not give the impression that they have been polished and placed here to be seen, but are of the more natural variety. A number of metaphors, person- ifications, and hyperboles are found here. a man who was "bigger than the ship” -- hyperbole. "could have heard it a thousand miles” -- hyperbole. "the almanac's been after some of us” -- personification. "pain walks with fine, sharp feet along every nerve of our bodies" -- personification "the centuries have gotten together on this man” -- personification. 791bido, p. 2370 211 ”plain garden variety of pain” -- metaphor. "the university of humanity” -- metaphor. ”he had it locked up in his heart” -- Metaphor. He also indulges in an instance of sarcasm, when he asks concern- ing the Good Samaritan, ”Then what did he do about it?” The answer Chap- pell supplies, "He said, 'What a pity! I'm sorry for him.'” Irony and sarcasm are infrequent tropes in Chappell's style. Sermon Delivery One additional area of analysis will be added to this case study, that is delivery, the reason being that this case study is based on a sermon taken from a tape recording. Obviously there is no visible code to evaluate, but we do have the audible. The manner of delivery was in all likelihood the extemporaneous (i.e., from memorized notes), for it has been Chappell's constant practice for nearly all of his ministry to speak without manuscript or notes. His pronunciation is usually accurate; and as we noted earlier, though his speech has some southern characteristics, it is not pronounc- edly so. In this sermon, which has considerable conversation in it, we find him imitating ”sloppy enunciation,” but on occasion in his own composition he will drop the ”g” off an occasional ”-ing” word, or omit the initial sound on "him” and ”them.” For example, he states, ”YOu've seen 'em.” In his conversational style he is not precise in making all sounds come through. His vocal pitch is at the conversational level for the most part, with occasional rises, and with considerable variety so as to leave the hearer with no feeling of monotony. The voice is of medium quality and pleasant to which to listen. A check of three sample minutes revealed 212 his rate of speaking to be about 155-160 words per minute. One of the most distinctive characteristics of his delivery is the expressiveness of his voice. He has the ability to put considerable pathos into it, and to put deep feeling into selected words. The fol- lowing examples from this sermon contain underlined words which he spoke with noticeable feeling: ”we stand at the forks of the road” "wounds that nobody knows about” ”he had his own heartache” ”he knew the meaning of tears” ”. . . watch for his home-coming” ”if you want to wreck a home" This vocal skill, coupled with occasional emotive language, gives Chap- pell considerable opportunity to exercise this mode of persuasion, along with logical and ethical proof. Summary This sermon on ”The Good Samaritan” is a well arranged message after the basic Chappellian pattern, yet with a number of distinctive features about it. It has the usual good outline, which is intention- ally made visible. The sermon divisions are drawn from the text and are coordinately related. The materials of development are somewhat different from those found in some of his sermons in that this sermon is heavy with narration, since he draws in detail from the context and uses a variety of illus- trations of his own. The illustrations all appear to be relevant to the points with which they are connected. The measure to which the two longer ones are expanded might be questioned. The interest value is high in these narrations, but the need for this amount of background material surrounding the ”kernel” of the narrative would hardly seem to be justified. 213 The ethical proof is stronger in this message, probably for the aforementioned reasons that the audience is a "special” one rather than a "regular” one; and that none of the personal element has been edited out, as may be the case with the printed sermons. The emotional mode of persuasion would seem to be strongly used in this message. The level of interest is kept high from beginning to end by the two-fold assistance of considerable humor and considerable narration. This particular message is distinctive in that it reveals Chappell to be a man who enjoys humor and is willing to put it into service. The whole sermon constitutes a strong motive appeal to com- passionate involvement with the needs of wounded souls. His style, though having many of the usual qualities, contains more than the usual amount of colloquialisms, and more than the usual amount of conversation. The composition contains much narrative. The style and delivery are both very conversational in character. The humorous, conversational, narrative, and at times emotional elements in this message would certainly contribute to its popular acceptance and to Chappell's appeal to the audience at large. The main criticism would be that the narrative aspect of the message may have been overdone, that the speaker's purpose might have been accomplished just as well with some reduction in this feature. CHAPTER VIII SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS The primary purpose of this study has been to investigate the theory and practice of Dr. Clovis Chappell in the field of Christian preaching, to analyze his preaching in terms of rhetorical theory, for the purpose of ascertaining, if possible, some of the keys to his effective- ness. It appears that the investigation has yielded several factors which have contributed to his effectiveness as a preacher for more than forty continuous years as a pastor, and in the more than twenty years of active retirement speaking. That he has been an effective pulpiteer is not being assumed without evidence. Although some measures of audience response are lack- ing, there are other indices. Statistical data concerning public deci- sions in response to his preaching and concerning accessions to the membership of churches during the times of his pastorates have not been obtained. The latter is probably a matter of record, but the former would likely be impossible of obtaining. Two other indices that we believe are worthy are: (l) Clovis Chappell was used by his denominational leaders continuously in large, downtown churches--not once or twice, but during nearly his whole active ministry. Some of these were outstanding churches, such as Highland Park Methodist Church, Dallas, following which he accep- ted an invitation to become pastor of the new Mount Vernon Place Church in the nation's capital; and (2) his being in constant demand as a speaker both during his pastoral days and in the more than twenty years of his 214 215 retirement.l There has been a constant demand for his speaking. Summary of Findings At this point we bring together what we believe to be the more salient findings of our study of Chappell. 1. It is evident that Clovis Chappell's home and early life left a very positive impression and influence upon him with respect to the Christian ministry. . . . it is true that my first wistful look at the ministry came through the influence of my father and mother. I was drawn toward this high calling both by the training they gave me and by what they were in themselves. I was influenced further by the honor that they showed the minister who was a frequent visitor in our home.2 His ministry was obviously not one of overcoming his past, but of building upon his past. 2. Chappell was not a doctrinal preacher, per se; yet we find the threads of doctrine woven into his practical messages. Seldom do we find one of his sermons that would be classified as of the ”doctrinal type”; but he ”preached doctrine practically and practice doctrinally,” joining individual conduct to the teachings of the Bible. His system of belief as found in Chapter II was largely drawn from references pieced together from many sermons. His practice of not preaching doctrinal sermons does not mean that he minimized doctrine, but rather that he believed that doctrine 1Another gauge might be the popularity of Chappell's books of sermons. It is admitted that a sermon or speech that reads well may not also be effec- tive in delivery. Nevertheless, Chappell's books of sermons have usually sold well. The manager of Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan reported in a letter to Arnold Kurtz, dated May 5, 1966, ”Sermons by Clovis G. Chappell and Clarence E. Macartney were always our best sellers." See Arnold Kurtz's unpublished dissertation on Macartney (Michigan State University), Appendix II. 2Chappell, Anointed £2 Preach, p. 23. 216 should not be delivered in ”full strength“ for public consumption. 3. Our speaker was a loyal ”son" of his church--the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and then The Methodist Church. His position doctrinally and on moral reform issues appears to be in harmony with the church in which he worked. If it might be granted that some measure of liberalization has taken place in the Methodist Church-~Robert E. Chiles' study of Methodist doctrine so indicated—-it would appear that Dr. Chap- pell has stayed quite constant with the conservative Methodist position, and prefers to call himself an "evangelical.” He appears to have stayed close by the position held by his church during the years of his youth and early ministry. #. Though Clovis Chappell has been much aware of social conditions and world events (he has traveled in Europe and lived in the nation's capital), he does not use the pulpit for discussing the social, economic, or political problems of the day, nor for discussing religious ”-isms.” He believes that the Bible has a message for all men in all conditions and that it contains the message that men need most of all to hear. Though he was much aware of the social problems prevalent during his active ministry, he rarely used the pulpit as a platform from which to issue a call to social action in the manner of some "social activists." His concept of preaching was other than this. 5. Contrary to some who believe that the days of Christian preach- ing are over and that we are living in some ”post-Christian” era, Chappell believes that preaching is the most important part of the pastor's work, and that preaching is efficacious. He says, ”EVery great day of the Church has been a day of great preaching," and "when the light has gone out in 217 3 the pulpit it has gone out around the world." His concept of preaching is that it is a divine-human endeavor, and is persuasive in design, aimed at moving men to faith and action. 6. The standards or qualifications of a good sermon which Chappell enunciates are: (a) it should be interesting, hence not dull and boring; (b) it should be simple, i.e., capable of communicating to most of the hearers; (c) the theme should be timely, in the sense of meeting the vital needs of the congregation; (d) it should sound a note of encouragement; (e) it should be positive and constructive rather than negative and denun- ciatory; and (f) it should have a note of authority and certainty. 7. The chief source of our speaker's sermonic materials is the Bible. In some circles this practice would be immediately assumed as part and parcel of Christian preaching; yet in some other circles the materials of preaching may be predominantly other than the Bible. Chappell states that he always takes a text. An investigation of his practice reveals that he almost always then goes to his text for his sermon divisions, and makes his text work for him. Concerning the use of a Bible text he states, "I have continued to use it through the years because of a very profound conviction that Bible-centered preaching is at once the most helpful and the least taxing."# By description and narration he utilizes the context in developing his theme. While he uses the Bible as the foundation for his sermons, it does not provide by any means all the stones for his structure. Many of his ideas, proofs, and illustrations come from personal experience, some from 3Ibid., pp. 28,29. 4Ibid., p. 76. 218 literature, and some from a fruitful imagination. 8. Dr. Chappell gives great care to sermon arrangement. His sermons are always outlined, usually with simple, clearly-delineated out- lines. The sermon headings are nearly always taken from either the text or context. He believes that the sermon should have a target and should move toward this goal. 9. Consistent with his theory that the sermon should be simple and interesting, Chappell's style is tailored accordingly. His word choice includes largely those words that are simple and easily understood, with rarely a technical word or theological term or foreign word. He believes that, in preaching, words are not intended to impress intellect- ually, but to convey truth as clearly as possible--hence simple words are to be preferred. Andrew W. Blackwood comments of Chappell's sermons, ”The diction of these messages proves to be that of the man in the street."5 Similarly, composition that is simpler in nature, rather than involved, is the desideratum. However, this striving for simplicity does not pre- clude the use of embellishment by our speaker; frequently he uses ap- propriate figures of speech and very picturesque phrases. 10. Our speaker believes, along with Cicero, that delivery is a very important element in making a message persuasive. He believes that the speaker should be very human (be his natural self and not an imitator) and very earnest. He believes that it is this earnestness, this ”man on fire,” which both makes the speaker fascinating and helps to convince the hearers. His personal delivery is more of the conversational type, with SBlackwood, Preaching i§_Time gf Reconstruction, p. 37. 219 only an occasional burst of energy and power. Chappell strongly prefers a delivery which is a conbination of the extemporaneous and the memorized. By this we mean what might be called, speaking from "memorized notes,” i.e., speaking freely from a memorized outline. An important asset possess- ed by Chappell personally is a vocal skill with which he is able to put great expression into single words and phrases. Often he makes the sound as well as the word communicate something to the hearers. Conclusions In addition to the summary of findings above, we turn now to several conclusions concerning a number of facets of Chappell's theory and practice of preaching. l. A Rhetorical Appraisal 2£_hi§_Theory and Practice. Chappell's principles of homiletics and practice of preaching appear for the most part to be in harmony with accepted rhetorical theory, especially that which is in the classical tradition. He conceives of the work of preach- ing to be that of persuading, not (in language borrowed from Phillips Brooks) the discussing of problems, but the communicating of a message that people need to hear and heed for their good. To the end of persuasion he utilizes what is commonly termed ethical proof, logical proof, and emotional proof. He adheres to the well-honored principle of ”audience adaptation,” seeking to embrace as many of his audience as possible within the understanding of his message. He believes that boys and girls are often a gauge as to whether or not a preacher is getting his message across and whether or not he has the attention of the larger part of the congrega- tion and that they should be watched for cues. He believes that a sermon should have good form as well as content. Chappell also believes that the 220 sermon style and delivery are not ends in themselves, but means to an end of getting the communication through. This, too, is basic to rhetorical theory and communication theory. 2. 313 Egg 9}; 2.133 £32213. Chappell uses the Bible in preaching in somewhat of a moderate position as preachers of the Bible go. For him the Bible is not merely a relic of centuries to which preachers cling from habit or tradition, but is the cornerstone of the Christian message, and hence of the sermon content. He is in good Christian tradition by being a faithful textual preacher, but he is not all the way to the ”right” in being only an expository preacher. Andrew Blackwood has rightly ob- served of our speaker, "Dr. Chappell shows how to serve as a Biblical preacher without becoming an expositor or an exegete."6 His practice is not to discuss Greek words and their meanings, nor to proceed didactically on a paragraph of Scripture, but to take a text, analyze its contents and context, and apply it to everyday life. We are quite confident that he believes in the psychological adequacy of Scripture as a mode of proof for many people, and yet he does not heavily rely on it for this purpose. Rarely does he take the approach, ”The Bible says," and consider the matter ended. Probably on Dr. Chappell's part this is a wise procedure, because not all in his congregation would likely accept the authority of Scripture; hence he makes room for rational appeals as well. Another important consideration at this point is that Clovis Chap- pell demonstrates the possibility of Bible preaching's still being popularly 6Ibid., p. 35. 221 received in the twentieth century, and that by educated pe0ple, and city churches as well. He shows that when the Bible is rightly handled and attractively presented and made relevant to everyday needs, people will still rally to such a ministry. 3. The Practice 2: Biographical Preaching. Biographical preach- ing is perhaps the dominant type of preaching used by our speaker. In this he is much like Clarence E. Macartney, another downtown city pastor who also specialized in it. Chappell assumes that because men of all times are basically the same, hence the presentations of the examples of men and women of yesterday are sure to have much in common with peOple of today. Blackwood believes that biographical is a popular kind of preaching (i.e., having popular appeal) and that people understand and like this kind; and he believes that it contributed considerably to giving Chappell the popular appeal that he had. In this respect Chappell clearly has something to say to other preachers of the twentieth century--that here is a way to get people into the Bible, and to do it in a way that is very palatable, and to render great benefit to their lives in so doing. Another reason why biographical preaching is quite popularly received is because of its use of narration and description. These tech- niques greatly facilitate interest and attention. Some other prominent preachers of our century, namely Clarence Macartney and Bishop Gerald Kennedy (see this theme in gig W233 Through Preaching), have also dis- covered that there is something tremendously more interesting than a verbal exposition of general ideas, and that is a dramatic rendering of truth 222 7 rather than an exposition of it. #. Chappell's Craftmanship. The evidence indicates that our speaker practiced good workmanship in his sermon construction. He depre- cates the idea of beginning late in the week to prepare for Sunday. His sermon outlines give evidence of careful thought. His illustrations are almost always relevant. His philosophy states that a preacher's first business is preaching and that it should have priority in his time and attention. As further evidence of his craftmanship, his practice through- out the years has been either to write out or to dictate the sermon before preaching it, and then to fix the outline in his memory. In these details of preparation he should be a stimulus to any speakers who believe that there are short-cuts to becoming an effective speaker. 5. _§i§_”Personalized" Approach pp Preaching. While this has been touched upon already in the section above on biographical preaching, it deserves separate consideration here. One of the case studies in particu- lar revealed Chappell's technique of taking a text which many preachers would have handled in the abstract and of "dressing it up in a person" and making it live. This again is utilizing the dramatic, the technique of narration. The result is not dehydration of the truth, but the putting of ”juice" into it. Another way in which Chappell ”personalizes” the materials of his messages is that of imaginatively putting thoughts into people's minds and 7 Arnold Kurtz, in his Ph. D. dissertation on Macartney (Michigan State University) says, ”The popular response to, and apparent effective- ness of, his imaginative dramatization of the Christian gospel by means of the narrative form (particularly Biblical narrative) would suggest that preachers might well recognize and use the narrative element in the gospel more than they do--that. . . the power of narrative to communicate meaning and to influence the lives of people is underestimated.) P. 390. R) N \N words into character's mouths, and then speaking them for his hearers. He capitalizes upon opportunities to inject the dramatic element of "per- sonalizing” what is otherwise impersonal. 6. His Method 2f Preaching without Notes. Throughout most of his ministry Clovis Chappell has practiced a form of sermon delivery which is a cross between the memorized and speaking extemporaneously from notes-- a method not commonly mentioned in speech and homiletics texts when methods of delivery are considered (Broadus, for example, cites ”Reading," ”Recitation," and ”Extemporaneous or free speaking” as the three forms of delivery.) In this method care is taken to memorize the points and sub- points, but not the exact language. This appears to have the best of both methods which it combines. There is the freedom of being released from one's notes, and lessened fear of forgetting what one is going to say as might be the case if one were depending upon word-for-word memory. In the use of this method there is possible what Chappell calls ”release of personality” in his essay in the book, I£_I_Had But One Sermon £2_Prepar . By ”release of personality,” he means that in using memorized notes, the speaker is completely free to put himself whole-heartedly into his delivery (as well as permitting him to give close observation to his audience). 7. ‘§i§_E§g pf Illustration. One of Chappell's strong points is his use of illustrations. The strength lies not so much in their use in argument, although he uses them in this way, but in that they have consider- able psychological value for him in at least three different ways: (a) they are important as a device to get and hold attention, (b) they can be used in motive appeals, and (c) they have definite emotive value. His illustrations are made to serve each of these functions in his sermons. Our case studies revealed that occasionally the illustrations were not 224 strategically placed for sustained interest, and in some instances they may have been over-elaborated. To practice the latter is to run counter to the rhetorical principle of economy of style. Our speaker usually tells his stories well, often utilizing des- cription, and often putting conversation into direct quotation rather than into indirect quotation. His latter practice may be a beneficial cue to speakers who wish to improve their effectiveness in narration. 8. Chappell's Use 2£_Voice. Part of Clovis Chappell's effect- iveness may be attributed to natural gifts and talents. Cicero said that ”nature and genius in the first place contribute most to public speaking.” Among these endowments, in the judgment of this investigator, Chappell has the ability to make his voice very expressive. He can put considerable pathos into the sounding of particular words or phrases, pathos that may well stir a responsive vibration in the souls of his hearers. It is the judgment of this investigator that this ability contributes considerably to making his delivery interesting to the listener, as well as having a positive emotive effect. 9. l§_Chappell's Preaching Relevant? This question is ”open-ended” and may be answered from several standpoints. He is relevant in terms of language, in that he speaks the language of the street, so that teenagers and the non-college segment of his audience can well comprehend him as well as the more educated. (We noted earlier some testimonials from some of his former parishioners to this effect.) He is also relevant in terms of theme, in that he dealt with the common lot of experiences which befall Cicero, Dg_0ratore, I, 25. 225 humanity and found a responsive interest on the part of his hearers. While some would probably consider him not relevant in terms of his not majoring on the social issues of the day, his emphasis on other issues is in harmony with his stated belief that the social gospel should not, or cannot, be put ahead of changed men, that changed people must precede a social gospel.9 lO. ESEHEESE Chappell Fit into the Twentieth Century? There is no one pattern or style that can be called I'twentieth century preaching,” for there are many kinds of preaching being practiced in America today. However, there are trends; and Charles Gilkey has observed, ”Topical sermons advertised on the bulletin board and in the Saturday newspaper, problem-sermons, life-situation sermons, book-review sermons, have grown more frequent as expository and even textual sermons have become fewer."lo If this observation of trends be true, then Dr. Chappell does not represent the more dominant style of preaching being practiced today. Our preacher represents the biblical and textual sermon part of the homiletical spectrum. Professor Gilkey reports that Charles Cuthbert Hall stated in 1907, concerning American preaching, that ”it had too many men who had a gospel, but did not know the language of their time," and, too, ”it had too many men who knew the language of their contemporaries perfectly--but had no gospel for them!"11 Gilkey's comment, then, is that if American preaching fifty years later is to escape this dilemma, it must ”learn how 9From a taped interview, April l#, 1970. See Appendix III. loArnold Nash (ed.), Protestant Thought _ip the Twentieth Century, p.219- 11Ibid. 226 to combine the solid substance and positive gospel of Edwards and Bushnell and Brooks, with the contemporaneousness and vividness of Beecher and Fosdick, . . . ”12 We believe that Clovis Chappell has in some measure succeeded in presenting the solid substance of the gospel with sufficient contemporaneity so as to get a wide hearing for his message in our century. 12Ibid. BIBLIOGRA Ph'Y BIBLIOGRAPHY A. Books by Clovis G. Chappell Chappell, Clovis G. Ape the Prophets. New'YOrk: Abingdon-Cokesbury ”655, 19,46. . Anointed to Preach. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1951. . Chappgll's Sppcial 221 Sermons. Nashville: Abingdon- Cokesbury Press, 1936. . Christ and the New woman. Nashville: Cokesbury Press, 1928. . The_g:oss before Calvagy. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1960. . Faces about the Cross. New Ybrk: The Abingdon Press, 1941. . Familiap Failpzes. New Yerk: Doubleday, Doran & Company, 1927. . Ebminine Faces. New'York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 19u2. . Home Fblks. . If I Were Young. New York: The Abingdon Press, l9h5. . In Parables. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1953. . Living pith Royalty. New'Yorka The Abingdon Press, 1962. . Livipg Zestfully. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, l9uh. . Meet These Yen. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1956. . Men That Count. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1929. . The Modern Dance. . Megs Sermons on Biblical Characters. . Questions Jesus Asked. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 948. o The Road to Captainty. New'York: The Abingdon Press, 19h0. . Sermons from Job. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1957. ??7 2?8 . Sermons frog Revelation. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, l9h3. . Sermons fzom thg Miracles. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1937. . Sermons from.the Payables. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1933. . §ermons from the Psalms. New Yerk: The Abingdon Press, 1931. . Sermons on Biblical Chayacters. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1950. . Sermons on New Testament Characters. New York: George H. Doran Company, 1925. . Sermons on Old Testament Characters. Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Dorsn & Company, Inc., 1928. . Sermons on Simon Peter. New Yerk: The Abingdon Press, 1959. . Sermons on the Lord's Prayer. Nashville: The Cokesbury Press, 193h. . The Sermon on the Mount. . The Seven Wbpgs. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1938. . Surprises in the Bible. NeW'York: The Abingdon Press, 1967. . Ten Rules for Living. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1938. . values That Last. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1939. . The Village Tragedy. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins Company, 1921. . When the Chpych Wes YOung. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1950. B. Other Books Alexander, Gross; Scouller, James 8.; Foster, R. V.: and Johnson, T. C. Ameyican Church Histogy, vol. XI. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1900. Allen, Frederick Lewis. Only Yespeyggy. NeW'York: Harper and Brothers, 1957. Atkins, Gains Glenn. Religion in egg Times. New York: Round Table Press, 1932. 229 Baird, A. Craig. Rhetoyic: A Philosophical lgguigy. New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1965. 3eecher, Henry ward. Yale Lgctures on Preaching. New York: Fords, Howard, and Hulbert, 1972. Blackwood, Andrew W. Bioggaphical Preaching for Today. New York: The Abingdon Press, 19 . . Preaching from the Bible. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1941. . Preaching in Time of Reconstruction. New York: The Pulpit Press ’ 19,450 . The Protestant Pulpit. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1997. Blair, Hugh. lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres. Tendon: ‘William Tegg, n.d. Broadus, John A. On the Preparation and Delivery of Sermons. New and Revised Edition by Jesse Burton weatherspoon. New York: Herper and Brothers, 19h4. Brooks, Phillips, Lectures on Preaching. Grand Rapids: Baker Book Heuse, Reprinted 1969. Bucks, Emory Stevens, ed. The Histogy of Ameyicag Methodigg, V013. I-III. New York: The Abingdon Press, 196“. Burke, Kenneth. A Rhetoric of Notives. Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1950 Chiles, Robert E. Theological Transition in American Kethodism: 1790- 1235. New York: The Abingdon Press, 1965. Cicero. De Orgtore. Translated by J. 3. Watson. Tendon: H. G. Bohn, 1855. Cooper, Lane, The Rh toric of Aristotle. New York: Appleton-Century- Crofts, Inc., 1965. Eisenson, Jon: Auer, J. Jeffrey: and Irwin, John. The Psychology of Commgnication. New York! Appleton-Century-Crofts, Inc., 1963. Perm, Vergilius, ed. he e can Ch h of the otestan Her ta e. NeW'Ybrk: Philosophical Library, 1953. Gaustad, Edwin Scott. A Re ous Histo f merica. New Ybrk: Harper & Row Publishers, 1%66. Rance, Kenneth 6.: Ralph, David C.: and Wiksell, Milton J. Principles of Sgakigg, 2nd Edition. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing Company. 19 90 230 Hansen, Harry, ed. The Wbrld Almanac and Book of Facts for 1952. New York: New Yerk World-Telegram Corporation, 1952. Hedgson, Teonard. The Eggrenical Fevemgnt. Sewanee, Tenn.: The Univer- sity Press, 1951. Hordern,'Wi11iam E. A Dayran's Guide to Protestant Theology. New York: The Macmillan Company, Revised Edition 1968. Illustraged Book of All Religions. Chicago: Star Publishing Company, n. do Lee, Umphrey. Qgr Fathers and Us. Dallas: Southern Nethodist Univer- sity Press, 1958. link, Arthur 3. American Epoch: A History of the United States Since the 1890's. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 3rd edition, 1967. Luccock, Balford 3. Endless Lrne of Splendor. Chicago: The Advance for Christ and His Church, 1950. Riley, John. §y§tematic Theology, vols. I & II. New York: Eaton 2 “81115 ' 1892 O Nash, Arnold 3., ed. Protestant Thought in the Twentieth Centgry. New York: The Yacmillan Company, 1951. Wesley, Thomas Benjamin. Doctrinal Standards of Methodism. New York: Fleming Ho RSV 811 Company, 1918. Newton, Joseph Fort, ed. If I Had Only One Sermon to Prepgrg. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1932. Nolde, 0. Frederick, ed. Toward Wbrld-Wide Christianit . New Yerk: Harper and Brothers, 19176. Olmstead, Clifton E. A HistorY‘of Religion in the United States. Engla- wcod Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1960. Quintilian. Institutes of Oratory. Translated by J. S. watson. Tendon: H. G. khn’ 195 O Sangster, W. E. The Craft 02 §gmon Constr_uction. Philadelphia: The westminster Press, 1951. Smith, P. Shelton: Handy, Robert T.: Teetscher, Lefferts A. American Orristranityy vol. II: 1820-1960. New York: Charles Scribner's $115, 1 3. Sweet, William warren. Nethodigm ir Americar History, Revision of 1953. New Yerk: The Abingdon Press, 195”. . The Story;of Religion in Aggrica. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1950. 231 Thonssen, Tester and Baird, A. Craig. Speech Criticism. New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1948. Welldon, J. E., tr. The "Rhetoric" of Aristotle. London: Nacmillan & COO ' 1886. Who's Who in America, 1968-1262, vol. 35. Chicago: The A. N. Marquis COmpany ’ 1968 I C. Articles and Periodicals Andersen, Kenneth, and Clevenger, Theodore, Jr. "A Summary of Experi- mental Research in Ethos." Speech Nonographs, XXX (June, 1963), 59-73- Douglass, Paul F. "Methodism." Encyclopgdia Americana. 1951. vol. 19. Jebb. Richard C. "Rhetoric." Encyclopedia Brittanica. 1889. VOl. 19. Harion, Indiana, Chronicle. "veteran of #1 Years in Ministry Retired to Preach, Not to Quit." April 0, 1957. D. Unpublished Materials Aarvold, Ole. "Clovis G. Chappell: The Man and His Message." Unpublished Th. M. thesis, Asbury Theological Seminary, Wilmore, Kentucky, 1953. Cherry, Edward F. "Preaching Elements of an Effective Ministry." Unpub- lished B. D. thesis, Huntington Theological Seminary, Huntington, IDdiana ’ 19660 Kurtz, Arnold A. "A Rhetorical Analysis of the Preaching of Dr. Clarence Edward Macartney, Twentieth Century Exponent of the Traditional Orthodoxy." Unpublished Ph. D. dissertation, Nichigan State Uni- versity, 1966. B. Other Sources Recordings: Seven sermons recorded on tape, three owned by Andrews Uni- versity Tape Library, two owned by Elmer Malcolm, Berrien Springs, Michigan, and two by this writer. A PPENDICES APPENDIX I SERMON: "THE GOOD SAMARITAN" (As taken from the 1969 Tape Recording) I am going to speak to you on, I think, the most popular char~ acter that Jesus ever drew. Jesus was the creator of characters, as you know, that from the standpoint of literature have lived as long as lit- erature lives. This is the favorite character, not the favorite story. The story of the waiting father and the wandering son is still the favor- ite, being the most tenderly beautiful and most beautifully tender story ever told. But this I think is the favorite character. He is such a favorite that the centuries--though he has been left nameless by the lord-'the centuries have agreed on a name for him. That is rather remark- able, because we do not get together on many things. we can disagree on almost everything. But the centuries have got together upon this man. Indeed the university of humanity has conferred a degree on him, the high- est degree they could have conferred. It is the degree of G-O-O-D. They call him "The Good Samaritan." I know its not a word that quickens our pulse very much. Because of its bad company it has had to keep, it has a kind of hospital odor about it. But it is really the brawniest of words. It is not only the beat that can be said about an individual, but it's the best you can say about God. So amidst the maddening maze of things, And tossed by storm and flood, To this firm faith my spirit clings: I know that God is good: Tet me read you his brief story--I do not follow altogether the authorized version. "Bg§_§ certain man went down from Jerusalem §g_Jeri- ghg_ghg fell ameng_robbers, who stripped him 9: his clothing and wounded him, beat h;m_gp, and departed leavigg h;r_half dead. And there chanced g_certain priest came that we ," and the emphasis is on the "by chance." If I'd have plucked this priest by the sleeve as he left his duties at the temple and said, "I understand you're going to attend a wounded man down the way,” he'd have said, "I know nothing about it." This was one of those off-duty'duties, one of those wayside opportunities, one of those unexpected calls. Woodhouse says something that every golfer will appre- ciate. He says, "There's no sharper test that ever comes to a golfer than comes when his ball is in the rough, and nebody's looking but God." There's no sharper test that comes to you and me than when we come face to face with a need that literally, or at least officially, is not any of our business. And the more busier a Christian worker is, the more likely he is to fall into that trap, "I have already attended to my duties. This man is not my job.” "_Ilo_w_ ha Essed Lay gr 3113 other side. Likewise g ?32 ?33 had compassion." What did the priest think of the first thing? What was the first thought that came into his mind when he saw this wounded man? I can tell you--I've been along the road myself. The first thought was this: "The chaps that got him are up there behind those boulders. I've got to look after number one." What was the first thought of the Levite? The same thing-~"Ive got to protect myself." What was the first thought of the Samaritan? The wounded man. He forgot himself. And the pain, the lone- liness, the anguish, the agony of the man who was wounded. Now this took place on the Jericho read. As you know that's a real road. but there's another road that's just as real, and that's the Jericho road on Which you and I live. Everybody lives and travels the Jericho road. Of all the millions that are in the world today, everybody is traveling the Jericho road. And here Jesus, with that fine insight, divides all these millions of people into just three groups, very natural groups, they are inimitable groups. 1h_e_ first group which _w_e_ meet 93 the Jericho road lg made r13 9; £22 wounded. You don't travel very far on your bit of the Jericho road until you run into casualties. And oftentimes you are one of the casual- ties yourself. Ybu have a choice about the other two groups, but you have no choice about this. You get in it many times, whether you want to or not. But we all get acquainted sooner or later with the wounded. And we don't wonder that John Watson, near the end of his ministry, said to a group of young ministers, "Be pitiful, my young friends, because everybody is having a hard time.” Everybody has been wounded. Now we are not all wounded in the same way. There are some folks who are wounded by being born in the wrong place. They were born in the land of poverty and of small opportunity, instead of the land of plenty like the one in which you and I live. It is hard work for us to believe in this land of abundance that over half of a world went to bed hungry last night. And over half of the world will never know what it is to have a square meal. There are most of them not responsible. They were just born in the wrong place. Some folks are wounded by being born the wrong color. Of course if you and I had been making the world, we'd a made everybody white-~that would have been the intelligent thing. (Amen!) But the Lord got mixed up and made some yellow, and some red, and some even black. And the colored folks across the centuries in the main have had the hot end of the poker. And if you believe in it, to blame any man for being the color God made him.is not a reflection upon the man--it's a reflection upon God, and I don't think you will like it. Some of us are wounded by natural causes. we used to have health. we don't have it anymore. Pain walks with fine, sharp feet along every nerve of our bodies. I think people are trying to be well harder than they used to. When I was growing up, I never saw a well person. It was kind of a disgrace. (Laughter) The best I ever heard anybody say they were was "tolerable.“ (Laughter) Of course now and then I would meet some reckless individual who would say he was "as well as common." 27+ But you had to let "x" equal that because you just didn't know how bad he was yesterday. But'we are trying to be well and we are right about it. This body's a holy something. I remember of one sister who was sick, always sick, enjoyed being sick, expected to live sick and die sick and go to heaven sick. well, the preacher went out to see her, and she forgot herself and said, "I haven't an ache or a pain today." Then she thought better of it. Then she drew her mouth down at the corners and said, "You know, doctor, I always feel the worst when I feel the best, because I know how bad I'm going to feel when I get to feelin' bad again." (Laughter) Some of us suffer. I think the older I get, the more I need to suffer just plain garden variety of pain. The almanac's been after some of us. But you know, I'm one of those fortunate souls that never suffered a minute over the almanac. I'm not a bit afraid to be old. In fact I'm gettin' more interest as an antique than I am as a preacher. (Laughter) Yen ask these hundreds of people that are more afraid of old age than they are of the atomic bomb. . . . . . . . . the further from the East must travel as nature's priest, And by the vision splendid is on his way attended. Now to ask the man . . . to die away and fade into the light of common day. Jot necessarily. It hasn't been that way for some of you. Thank God, it hasn't been that way for me. I doubt that there's a teen-agar on this hill that is having as good a time as I am having. I don't want to be young. I have no desire to be young. I've fished that stream out. (Laughter) And I've caught them too. (Laughter) So I wouldn't be as young ignorant as many of you are for anything. (Laughter) . . . . . do take some things away from us that we would like to keep. There's no use in ducking that. Remember it also puts some things in our hands that's priceless, but there's some things that slip away from us that we would like to keep. For instance, we are not as strong as we used to be. An old chap about my age said to me some time ago, "I'm just as good a man as I was forty years ago." I looked at him, and he was a good enough a friend for me to say that, and I said, "There's no surer mark of senility than that." (Laughter) I said, "The almanac's certainly riding you." There's some things we can't do as well as we used to. Of course I'm senile enough to think I can preach as well as I ever could, but it's just according to how well I could do it the other time. we're not quite as daring as we were when we were young. "He will be afraid of that which is high." How true that is! If you'd have said to me forty years ago, "Don't go that that church. Nobody can do anything with that church,“ I'd have said, "Let me try it." If you would say that to me new, I would say, "All right, let one of these young fellows do it. I don't want to be bothered with it anyway." we get wounded by our own choices. we stand at the forks of the road everyday. we Christians take the easier way or the harder way. The 235 way that appeals to our own will or the way that appeals to the divine will. Sometimes we go further and take a positive wrong road. God gives us that privilege, but whenever you take a turning, you've got to travel to the goal to which the turn leads. There's no way of getting out of that. I had a schoolmate years ago who had everything--charming as sea music, winsome, and appealing. But he wasted his substance in substance in riotous living. And by-and-by when he was getting close on to middle life, he checked up, and he said one day, "Chappell, I am not dissipating like I used to--I've quit that." And then he didn't want to be misunderstood, that he was a decent fellow, he said, “But don't mis- understand me." He said, "I don't mean I've become a Christian-~not that. I just got tired hurtin'" That was it. Some of us bleed from hidden wounds, that nobody knows about. I've always had a soft and tender spot in my heart for that old king of Samaria, that when his city was besieged, and the food supply--it was abundant for awhile but it began to dwindle. And in order to keep up their morale, he would dress himself in royal robes and parade along the wall. I think at first they looked at him with laughing eyes of appreci- ation, and said, "He's with us in this." But hunger pinched and pinched and pinched, until by-and-by they were reduced to the ghastly terror and horror of mothers eating their own babies. And they looked at him with different eyes, and they said, "He doesn't know of the hot hell through which we are passing." And their love was almost changed to hate, until one day, just by sheer accident, they happened to see through a tare in his royal robe, and they noticed that he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. He had his own heartache. He knew the meaning of tears and bit- terness. But he had looked it up in his heart, to come out and smile on the world and make it a little easier for them. Now hearts will break and . . . these signs save tightening lips and whitening tresses. we all know'something about the wounded. And the reason most of you are here this evening--I am certain the reason I am here is, because more than once I have been picked up instead of passed up. Some of the most delightful memories of my life have been those pick-up times. I was traveling in Europe years ago, traveling alone. And it so happens I am a bad sailor. What I mean.by that is, I'm a bad sailor. But what I'm trying to get across to you is that when I get out of sight of land, I feel just like a "cholera-ed" chicken looks. And I was traveling alone, and I took vessel from Danzig to go over to Stockholm. It was about eleven o"clock and I hurried into the dining room to get something to eat before we got out into the open sea, because if you have my ail- ment, you can do better if you have something to work on. (Laughter) But the waittress wasn't quick enough, and I had a pressing call to the rail. And.when I got out there, I made the acquaintance of a gentleman from Houston. I never had seen him before. But we had sweet fellowship. (Laughter) He was a long, tall, cadaverous, bilious fellow--the only man I ever saw that could do it as well as I could. (Laughter) And as we stood there enjoying ourselves, there came a puff of wind. He had on a dark red tie, sort of like mine, and it blew it up in his face. And me said, "There goes my liver--I knew it would come." (Prolonged laughter) 236 I went all over to Stockholm and down to Guttenberg where they were having a world's fair, and I soon finished it and decided I would re- turn to London. And being alone I hadn't made a reservation, and so I went down and the purser said, "I haven't any berth left, so you.will share a room‘With three other men. "Well," I said, “if that's the beat you can do, I'll take it." And so I took the berth and got on, and the usual thing happened. I went down.and went to bed. Now my bed was an improvised affair, made out of a couple of plank with a quilt over it, a "cooling-board“ effect, very fitting. And I got on my bed and was lying there when a sunny-faced gentleman looked in. And he said, "Hello, chap." I said, "Hello." He said, "How are you getting along?" I said, "Fine, I'm traveling for pleasure." And you know he did a queer thing for a man to do to an utter stranger. He walked over andrtucked the covers in under me. And when he saw what kind of a bed I had, he looked up at me as though he were genuinely indignant and said, "This is my bed." "Oh," I said, "it isn't." I said, "Besides that, it's not worth arguing about." I said, "In addition, I'm not in an argumentative frame of mind. Just leave me to my enjoymen ." And he went away and left, and the night came on, and I knew I couldn't feel worse up on deck. And so I got up and went up on deck and attended to a few chores, bedded down the fish for the night. (Laughter) And when I came back down to our room about twelve o'clock--it was nearly in the land of the midnight sun-~you could see about ES‘Well as you can see in here. To my utter amazement there was that stranger upon my bed. And I went to bed there in his lovely bed, and looked over at him in that tWilight. He pretended to be asleep, and I looked at him'with a heart that swelled and swelled. "New," I said, "what did you do that for? (to myself) What in the world got into your heart to do that for a rank stranger?" Of course the next day I looked him up the first thing. He was a Britisher, and when they're good sports, they're the best sports on earth. And I ran my arm through his and said, "What did you do that for?" And, you know, he was about as embarrassed as ever . . . . . . "Well," he said, "you knew, I saw you were ill, and I saw that you weren't used to roughing it. And I've been doing a bit of missionary work over in the Congo. I've been over there roughing it for ten years, going home on fur~ lough. And I knew if I offered you my good bed, you wouldn't take it, and I had to give it to you by guile." He said, "You'll forgive me, won't ya?" And I looked at him--he was bigger than the ship, he was bigger than the sea. He had the very bigness of God in him. He could put himself in the other fellow's place. The wounded. §gcond grg those Ehg_wound--they're divided into two groups. Those who wound agressivelyr-they represent the robbers. They looked out and said, "Yonder comes a man. He looks like he's in good circumstances. Alone in body, he's defenseless, we can take him easy." ‘Without any thought of his rights, or of the wife that might watch with tear-dimmed eyes for his home coming, or the little children that might ache, whose hearts might break for the hug of their father's arms, they spring on him. He was a resolute chap, and he fought almost to the point of death, but they took what they wanted, and left him there to die. 237 well, you say, I would never do that. No, we don't feel very much conviction there. Don't very many of us wound aggressively, with our hands-~some of us dO‘with our tongues. I think of all the ads that appear on the television--and some of them are the essence of abomina- tion--but of all the ads that offend my very soul, it's that when it hap- pens to every member of the family, just a typical scene, where the father's coming home at night, and the boy's bicycle is in the driveway. Andhesaystohisvrlfe, "a ......."andhegoesinandgetaa pill and he's all sweetness and life. Now you know that's a terrific lie. Anybody that flies off the handle because they're sick or have a headache, they got the meaness in them. They just didn't have the pres- ence of mind to keep it choked. New I think Henry Drummond was right when he said, "Perhaps more tears and heartaches have been caused by sheer loss of temper than any other thing." It is an abominable thing to fly off and snap somebody to pieces. I knew the psychologists, some of them say, that when you get all pent up on the inside-~a husband and wife--spit it out on one another. Don't believe a word of it. Blessed is the falling out that all the more endears, When we fall out with those we love and kiss again with tears. That may be all right, but I'll take my'kissin' with a different sauce. “obody ever loved anybody any better because they stabbed them to pieces with their tongues. I knew a great preacher some time ago. There's an old chap that came in and took the front seat, and he sniffled and wheezed and coughed and sneezed til he looked like he was gonna break up the meetin'. And this lovely preacher lost his temper and blessed him out. He might as well have packed his grip and left town. Folks don't believe in that sort of religion. Tell me what makes you mad and I'll tell you what sort of individual you are. And ”mad” is the right word, not simply "angry." Wecause when we get intensely angry we push love and reason off the throne and insanity takes its place, and you do things--. Take husbands and wives, when you get into a quarrel, they not only say the meanest truth they can about each other, but if you're mad enough, you'll lie a little. But the most dangerous group of those who wound are those who wound passively. That's the group that Jesus was most afraid of. Did you notice that of the parables of judgment that Jesus uttered, not one single one was uttered against the aggressive sinner--the man that shot up the town, the man that wrecked the home, the man that robbed the bank. Every parable of judgment that he ever uttered, he uttered against the man, the good man, the decent chap, that stood in the presence of human need and just let it alone. He didn't do a thing about it. I never out my neighbor's throat. My neighbor's gold I never stole. I never spoiled his house and land, But God have mercy upon my soul. 238 I am haunted night and day For all the good I have not done, For unattempted loveliness, For costly valor never won. All that you have to do to wreck any value is nothing. If you want to wreck the best church in the world, you don't have to run the minister out of town, you don't have to do anything. Just let it alone. If you want to wreck a home, just let it alone. If you want to lose all the values that are represented in your religion, just do nothing. No man was ever lost for what he did. Every man that ever cut out into the night, . . . because of what he failed to do. "Inasmuch g§_yg,gig.i§_ng§" --that is the sentence of damnation. The folks that wound passiver. Then there are thosg that heal. I am glad to get around--that's the third truth. I want to be a member of that group. There's some folks that just heal by being there. You've seen 'em, that when they come, some how or other, you are put on easy street: and you feel, that after all, that life is a priceless something, and that it is good to be a man. When this Samaritan came and saw the wounded man, it said he had compassion on him. Then what did he do about it? He said, "What a pity: I'm sorry for him." You know pity is the cheapest thing in the world unless it drives you into action. But there was love in the heart of--here's what Christ- ian love means. Did this Samaritan when he Saw that man--that wounded ugly thing--did he fall in love with him? Not a bit of it. Christian love is an aggressive sacrificial good will that goes out to help, and to turn to help. He went up to him, and he didn't have to borrow a thing-- he just used what he had. He bound him up, poured in oil and wine, which is Jesus's way of saying, "When you come to a human need, when it takes you by surprise, all that God asks of any man is to do his best." So he bound the chap up, got involved in his difficulty, got all messed up, got his clothes dirty. Didn't want to get involved, but we never do. For the most wretched women that I know-~and I know of one--and she's a fine woman in so many respects--that whenever she was asked to do anything, she'd say, "I don't want to be tied down." And so she would pass it up. Till now, she's an old woman, and she's not tied down--except by her loneliness. She built herself a little house, all walled around with pride; Took . . . as her servant and shut herself inside. She pulled the bars down tight as tight when sorrow chanced to roam. When experience called, she sent down word that she was not at home. Wherefore should she now complain, or wherefore should she sigh, If life and love and laughter have passed unseeing by? Blessed are the folks that get involved! That get tied up in every little sorrow, the other fellow's wounds, the other fellow's heartache. So he got him to a hotel and took care of him. The next morning he gave the hotel keeper some money. Jesus was not above, not afraid of introduc- ing that prosaic stuff we call money. Because there's nothing more sacred than the so-called "secular." 239 How how did the story come out? That's what we want to know-- how did it end? Did the chap get well or didn't he? we don't know. He either did get well, or . . . when he got well--we don't know. Why did not Jesus tell us that? Because when you come face to face with human need, it's not your business. If you knew beyond the doubt that by speak- ing to your friend, you could win him to Jesus Christ, of course you would speak to him. But because it is a high adventure of faith, you don't speak to him. You are not asked to win him. Yen are commanded to try. You're commanded to do your best. I heard Bud Robinson preach from this text years ago. I don't know whether any of you ever knew Bud Robinson or not. He was a Nazarene preacher. He had epilepsy for many years of his life, went for about half of his life with his shoulder blades out of joint, from epileptic fits, but the lord healed him of his epilepsy. He stammered so that if you met him at the forks of the road, after he had gesticulated for fif- teen minutes, you'd say "Thank you," and just guess it. But the Lord healed him of his stammering, but he still had a lisp. I heard he was preaching one time where I was pastor, in my city, when I was pastor of First Church, Birmingham, preaching in a little Haz- arene church, and I invited him to preach in my church. The only date we could give him was one week day afternoon. Think about that in a great down town city church. But I had told so many of his stories that the house was almost full. And I have seldom ever passed through a service that was so rewarding and so rich. He told the story of his wonderful life. He didn't have any formal education. The Lord didn't use him because of that--He used him inspite of it. He always said, "I seen," when he ought to have said, "I saw." But I'd rather a man would say "I seen" and see something than say "I saw," and never see anything. (Laughter) He said, "I was raised in a little one-room log cabin up in the mountains of Bath Tennathee.” He said, "I ueth to have to thleep'with the dogth, if you could get the dogth to thtraighten out." And he told this story as he closed this sermon. He had a lisp as I've reminded you, and he said, ”I wath walking down the thtreetth of Bothton when I theen a terribly dilapidated fellow comin' to meet me--just terribly dilapi- dated. And he come up and bummed me for a nickel to get a bowl full of thoup.” And I said, "You ain't a goin' to get no nickel to get a bowl of thoup. There's a thaloon over there that will get both you and the thoup too. But I'm goin' out to dinner--you come and go to dinner with me." And we went out to dinner, and when.we set down I said, "would you like a good piece of thteak?" And he said, "If you please, sir." "Wbuld you like a good glath of thweet milk?" And he said, “If you please, sir." "would you like a piece of apple pie with thum ieth cream on it?" And he said, "If you please, sir?" And while he et, I wasn't hungry. And I told him how'I used to be an old sinner, away from home, and how nobody loved me, and the lord saved me. And a little while after that he called me to preach. I was a lying down under an ox cart with my head on a choke, but it theemed like the Lord spoke to me, and he said, "Buddy, I want you to preach for me." 2&0 And I said, "lord, I'll do it. I'll fight the devil as long as I got a fist, and I'll bite him as long as I got a tooth, and then I'll gum until I die." (Laughter) He said, "Now I'm preachin' down here in a little church, and I want you to come and hear me preach. And he said, "I'll be there if I ain't dead." And he said, sure enough when I got there he was settin' right there on the front seat. And I preached. And when I called for decisions, he just fell over on the mourner's bench and got religion. And he said, "Three years later I was away out in North Dakota, when a chap came upr-a great big fine lookin' fellow, and grabbed me up in his arms, and hugged me like I was a little child. He grabbed me up again and run around with me. Then he that me down and said, "Buddy, you don't know me do ya?" And I said, "No, I don't." He said, "You remember that fellow that bummed you for a nickel to get a bowl of soup?" And there he stood, a preacher, so big and fine that if he had stomped his foot, you could have heard it a thousand miles. ”And he jutht cotht eighty thentth." Yes, eighty cents plus Calvary. Plus a man with heart enough and compassion enough and faith enough to take a wayside opportun- ity. Let us pray. APPENDIX II 1. ?. 3. h. 5. NfiSSANETTA SPRINGS INTERVIEW Interview Between Dr. Clovis G. Chappell and Harold R. Cherry Al Q: A: at Massanetta Springs, Virginia, August 19, 1969. In what kind of a home were you reared? I was reared in a very religious home. My father was a farmer and a leader in the local church. They always treated the circuit rider very kindly and made me want to be one too. Are there other preachers in your family? Two brothers are also preachers--one older and one younger than I. What preparation did you have for the ministry and for public speaking? I did not take any courses in public speaking--just practice. I did do a little debating. I attended Duke University and Harvard, intending to be a teacher. I went from the classroom into the ministry. I talked the language of the people--not theological language. I don't know as I have any regrets for not having semi- nary training. I have read seminary books. were there any key persons who influenced your life? Any idols? I don't know as there have been any key persons. There was a lay- man in Texas, a tenant farmer, who had some influence upon me. However a Sunday School superintendent at Waverly, Tennessee, by his action, had a very definite influence. This superintendent asked me to take ten minutes to give a summary to the Sunday School lesson each week (Chappell now grown). These ten-minute devotionals or summaries each week gave me confidence to enter the 17153115th0 Ministerially, a Mbthodist preacher in New York, Dr. Charles Jefferson, influenced my preaching more than any other man. Is there anything in print on your views concerning preaching and homiletics? I have a book of lectures, Anointed pg Preach, which is the result of a series of lectures I brought one time. It's available from the Mbthodist Publishing House in Nashville, Tennessee. In this series I was determined to bring my own personal experience on 7&1 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. ll. 12. A: 7U? preaching, not a dry presentation based on the writings of others in the field. Are there some records or tapes available of some of your sermons? There are thirty-six books of my sermons that have been published. Also the Bible Conference here has some tapes of my messages. Concerning your books of sermons: are some of them written ser- mons only? were all of them actually preached? No, none of them are written sermons--they were always preached first. Have these sermons been edited much? They were corrected before being published. I have always written them or dictated them before preaching, dictated with the congre- gation in the eye, so that they will sound spoken. Are there any good sources of biographical material on your life and ministry? many have inquired about my life, but not much has resulted. One chap started to write my life and tended to make a hero out of me. I'm not a hero. I'm a coward. I don't want a biographer to make a hero out of me. Now concerning your ideas on preaching-~what is preaching? I don't know as I have a definition of preaching. It is saying in a simple and interestigg way what you have learned from the Lord. The first essential is, it must be interesting. What is its purpose or goal? It is to get some sort of action. If it doesn't move a man to action, it is a failure. HGW'did you, or how do you go about preparing a sermon? I never find a text when I'm hunting for one. I get my texts from reading. I start with one which stirs my own soul. On my eightieth anniversary they had me speak in my home town. I took as my text, Joshua 13, "New Joshua was old and increased in years." I read the context over and over until it becomes real to me. I read other things relevant and make notes. Then comes the 13. Q3 A: 1“. Q! A: 15. Q! A: 2u3 tug-of war-~how to organize them. What sort of basic sermon structure do you follow? A good outline is very important. I suppose I have made fifty sermon outlines on the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican. I get into the body of the sermon as soon as I can. I don't believe in long introductions. You've got to hit the ground a-running. Then stop when you're through. What thoughts do you have on the style of language used in a sermon? If I start to use a word everybody doesn't understand I change it for one that they do. I believe that it should be done in good English. I believe it should have some literary beauty and not be stilted. It doesn't need to be all seriousness. It is as religious to laugh as it is to cry. A preacher should speak, not so a wise man has trouble in understanding you, but so a fool can't help but understand you. What is your preferred mode of delivery? I use no notes or no manuscript. I feel definitely that the audience puts on brakes when you use these. It is necessary to look at the congregation, to look them in the face, in order to persuade 0 Some Misgellaneous Comments: "The best and worst in a congregation want to hear a simple gospel sermon." "Some preachers have target practice, others shoot to kill." "I never lecture, I always preach-I always take a text." He advises: "Tell people what you believe." "I consider myself more a layman than a preacher.“ "I like to preach. I enjoy preaching." "I'm just an ordinary preacher--I am what I am by the grace of God." APPENDIX III TELEPHOHE INTERVIEW A Taped Interview between Dr. Chappell and This Writer, April 14, 1970 1. Q: First of all, I've learned that you have two sons, and I was won- dering about their life's work and where they are. A: The oldest son is a lawyer in Midland, Texas, a town of about 35,000, an oil town out in the desert. His name is Clovis Chap- pell, Jr. The younger son was a medical missionary to India for two years, but the climate of southern India compelled him to come home on account of his wife, and he is now a physician in Texarkana, Texas, on the east side--about #00 miles apart. my book, 1.9.! Rules £93; Living, I dedicated 2Q :31 9L0 sons 2112. have enabled mg_§g preach £22 gospgl without embarrassment. 2. Q: Next, I was wondering what your first schooling opportunities were. You mentioned going to Wbbb School, but what did you do before that? A: well, we had a public school in a little village near where I lived. my post office was Flat Wood, but this was a little vill- age of about 75 population, and I lived in the country and I went to the public school. We had a fairly good school. I passed entrance examination for college before I went to webb School. 3. Q: Somewhere in my reading I learned that you had some interest in debate. Is that true? A: Well, I debated in the public school at Flat wood, and then when I got away at college I debated some. I debated enough to know how to stand on my feet though. I am naturally a timid man, and I shook so when I spoke--everybody used notes in those days-~I would have used notes but they shook so everybody could see them, so I didn't make notes: I spoke purely from memory, and I never have used notes in the pulpit or out of it. h. Q: I'm interest a little in your preparation for the ministry. Did you follow some the Methodist Course of Study? A: Yes, I followed the Methodist Course of Study. I couldn't tell you the names of all the books. Yes, we had something from Dean Tillett of Venderbilt University. He was the dean of vanderbilt University. It was then a Methodist school, it is not a Method- ist school anymore. 2hh _ iTfifi?7—Wnn if ‘ . V _J_ ‘_ A . 5. i S. 6. 7. Q: Q: A. Q: 21.5 What did you study by way of something in Systematic Theology? Do you remember what book you might have had? Did you ever study Miley? No, I haven't studied either one of these you mentioned. I tell you-~my conviction is that what you learn in school on homiletics doesn't amount to half as much as what you learn doing it when you get out. And what I discovered in commentaries has never been worth very much to me, but the new translations have. I used to read some in the original, but I quit because I knew if I found myself differing from some of these greatest translators, why, I would have to go with them. So the first thing in preach- ing a sermon, after you find a text, is to know exactly what the author is saying. If you agree with him, then you can go ahead and prepare a sermon. If you don't agree With him, you'd better get you another text. There's no use bringing any more doubts. They've got plenty of them without your helping them. Now a little bit about your theological beliefs, if we can iden- tify them a little. I suppose you'd fall in the Arminian per- suasion? well, yes, I'm an Arminian, I'm an evangelical. I wouldn't hardly classify myself as conservative, but I'm more of one than I am a liberal. "You like the term evangelical?"--H.R.C. Yes, I like that better. And then all these scraps over fundamentalism and modernism-~I don't agree altogether with either one of them. There's no use in a man getting up and classifying himself,delib- erately cutting his congregation half in two. I want to preach to the whole congregation and not the half of it. I've spent almost all of my ministry in the downtown church. Now there is a difference between the downtown church and a suburban church. A suburban church usually has one social, econo- mic, and intellectual bracket. The people are very much alike. The downtown church is a cross section of humanity. You have the richest and the poorest: you have the most literate and the illi- terate. And you can't get up before any congregation and just preach to one part of the congregation. Therefore, I studied the art of simplicity. No man has the right to preach but so that the simplest man that comes into his congregation can't get something. You are wasting the time of the would-be listener, but you are doing something even worse--you are vaccinating them against preach- ing, so that the real thing won't take when it comes along. You kill all expectation, and an audience without any expectation is like an audience of wooden Indians, and an expectant audience is alert and alive. Every good sermon has a surprise in it. If it isn't surprising to you, it won't be surprising to them. Now I know that the Methodist Church through the years of its his- tory have had what they called the Wesleyan Doctrine on the matter of sanctification. Where would you rate yourself in relation to that? “m, w- 52W?" “ 7‘" L “B 8. 9. 10. 11. Q: A: Q: Q: Q: A: 2&6 When you are justified, you are on your way to sanctification anyway. And then, how would you tell a man to get sanctified? You.would tell him just exactly like you would to get justified. Now I believe in Virginia last summer when I talked to you, you mentioned that Dr. Charles Jefferson had meant quite a lot to you. Did you ever know him, or is it a matter of reading some of his works? Or in what way? I read nearly everything he wrote. He was always clear and he was the master of the short sentence, and he was always saying he never chased rainbows. He never tried to prove something he couldn't prove, that wasn't worth proving if he did. I never have a horror of preaching a sermon that someone would come forward and say, "I agree with you. So what?" I'd say, "So nothing--I was just preaching." Ibu've got to speak today so that the cultured man can understand you, and you've got to speak so that a fool can't help but understand you. Other- Wise if people listen to you it's because you made them listen. Some few come to listen, but the majority of people who come to church, donft come to listen. It is evidenced by the fact of how often they come, and say, "That was a good sermon, I enjoyed it." What did they mean? They mean, "I didn't intend to enjoy its-I intended to be bored full of holes like it was last Sunday, and you surprised me by making me listen." And that's the only way to do this-~you've got to compel them. Have you written any articles for magazines? If I were to go to some libraries, could I find anything by you? No, I've spent all of my time on sermon writing. Oh, I've got a dozen or so magazine articles. There are a few articles about myself for instance. The best article I had was by Joseph Fort Newton. He used to be at the City Temple. He came back to Phila- delphia and fer a year or two or three or four he wrote for one of the leading women's magazines. I forget the name of it. I don't think it is published now. One month he would write on the stage and the other one on the pulpit. And he wrote an article about me on the pulpit--that was a good article. How about that article in the Charlotte Observer? Is that avail- able? ' Yes, that'a available. I haven't read it--don't know if it's any account or not. But I'll send it to you if you want it. What is your thinking on the Social Gospel, that has been quite a point of controversy for one hundred years, I guess? Well, of course, a man can't preach the gospel without preaching a social gospel. But if you put the social gospel first, you are Tut", :1“!- _1—-n. .2111»va ‘r 2h? putting the cart before the horse. You've got to get a man con- verted, that is, as a rule. I remarked to a chap today what he hadn't thought of before, and I've never heard attention called to it, but it's a fact--the only generation of preachers that ever changed the social order that we talk about so much, never men- tioned the social order. At the birth of Christianity they didn't say a word against slavery, against infanticide. They didn't denounce idolatry. They didn't go out saying what's the matter with Zeus or what's the matter With Minerva? If I'd been living then, I would have preached a whole series of sermons on false gods. But they didn't do that-the ‘went around and said, "Look what we've found!” And it is positive preaching that changed the world, and it will be that kind that's going to change it now. Of course, when a man gets converted, partly through the leadership of the Spirit and partly through sheer common sense, he has to have a social gospel. 12. Q: Now'concerning the Ecumenical movement'which has occupied so much attention-~what do you think of this movement for merger? A: I believe that we work in the ecumenical movement a little better now'than.we did a few years ago. I don't believe in ecumenicity of one denomination. I think if we had one, we'd scrap most of the time because we are not alikp.- Wb don't want the same sort of liturgy. If we succeeded.with it, we would likely get puffed up over it-dwe would be arrogant. I think denominationalism is not all bad. That old phrase, "Let us provoke each other to good works“--that happens sometimes. Now here again we are far more ecumenical than we used to be. For instance, I'm asked to preach for the Baptists, and some of our biggest meetings and in some of our best churches I'm asked to hold meetings. That wouldn't happen twenty years ago at all. And when a Catholic priest and a Baptist can fill the same pulpit --that's ecumenical. I don't believe in ecumenicalism in one denomination. I don't believe that will ever happen in the first place. I don't know as it needs to happen. 13. Q: New when you were in the pastorate, I'm sure you did quite a lot of outside speaking. Can you tell me what kind or variety that was? A: Well, I would hold about four other meetings for some other church a year-some for the Methodist Church, sometimes for the Presby- terians, sometimes for other denominations. 1h. Q: would that be a meeting of several days for each one? A: Yes, it was a meeting of ten.days or two weeks then. You couldn't do that now; we've shortened them up. But a man is a better , preacher--I felt like--if he preaches widely. He'll love his own work better , and his work will love him better. You don't have to be in your pulpit every Sunday of the year. Of course you can 15. Q: A: 248 hold your congregation some times better that way if you are a good preacher. But I believed in preaching widely. Now how about since you retired--I presume you have been quite active? I've spoken a great deal. I can make a civic club speech, but it is the least rewarding, in my opinion, of am other type. They have a set routine, and I've had them over and over to jump and applaud, and I say to myself, "Well, I've got these old boys this time, they will all be there tonight, " but you never see one of them again. They don't care whether you make a good speech or not--they've got a little routine they have to go through, ani they've got you there to help them out with that. All right, brother, I hope you can make something out or its A PPFJ‘JDIX IV--A OUTLINES 0F SERMONS "The Forks of the Road--MOSes" Introduction: I. Ten ’- Hebe 1182’4‘?6e II. The forks of the road is a very revealing spot. III. Moses was a man of decision. 5 ss 0 : I. There are two elements in all decisions. A. A negative element. 1. There was something to which Moses said "No." 7. So often our "No" is lacking in positiveness. B.4A positive "Yes." 1. No amount of negatives will ever make a Christian. 2. lllustr.: a wax figure in one of the stores. 3. A "No" is important to the "Yes." II. This decision of Noses was costly. A. There was much to be given up. 1. Giving up high social position in Egypt. 2. He also said "No" to the pleasures of Egypt. 3. It involved giving up the treasures of Egypt. h. It was to bring disappointment to one who loved him. 3. The cost is also measured in what he chose. 1. He chose suffering and affliction. III. How did Noses come to make this choice? A. He had a clear eye for distinguishing right from wrong. B. He knew that the pleasures and gain of sin are only temporary. A description of sin in retrospect-~it does not look nearly as fascinating afterward. C. He had a keen eye for permanent'values. D. He looked away from everything else to the coming reward. IV. What was the outcome of this decision? A. Hoses received the reward of a Christlike character. B. Through this decision he rendered a great service to his nation and to the world. C. This decision enabled Hoses to win heaven. we are sure of it by his appearing in the transfiguration. Conclusion: I. Chappell commends the decision of Moses. II. He briefly reviews the points. (Taken from Sermons on Old Igstament Chagactegs) 2&9 250 APPENDIX IV--B "A Wbman's Wrongs--Hagar" Introduction: I. Text -- Gen. 21:17, "What aileth thee, Hagar?" II. A re-creation of the parched, dry, desert scene. III. A description of the suffering condition of mother and child. IV. Why is Hagar sitting here? V. To this lost and hopeless woman God speaks. Discussion: I. What is implied by this question? (in the text) A. It brought to her the realization that God had not lost her. Quotation from Psalm 139. B. It implies that God knew her sorrows. C. This question implies that God wants her to tell Him her story. 1. An analysis of the Bible setting. 2. Application: God is just the same today. 3. Quotes a stanza of an unnamed song. D. It implies, that if Hagar would tell, God would help. 1. A plicat on: This is an invitation to burdened hearts to come to God for help. II. What response did Hagar make? A. Chappell imaginatively re-creates her complaint and expands at length on Hagar's story. 8. She is in danger of hating those wronging her. III. What answer did God make to this pathetic story? A. There are some things God didn't tell her to do. B. God whispers, "Fear not." C. The lord opened Hagar's eyes. 1. The provision was there all the time. 2. Application: The Cross too is there for us. 3. Why had she not seen the provision before? u. She hastens to the fountain. Conclusion: ' An appeal to the hungry and thirsty to come and drink. (Taken from Sermons on Old Testament Chapacteps) 251 APPENDIX IV--C "The Village Tragedy" Intppgpction: I. Text -- John llxlh, " . . . Lazarus is dead." II. Death is so final. All ministries for health are no longer needed. III. .How'commonplaoe each day, yet how fresh, is the tragedy of death: Discussion: I. Death comes to the home of Mary and Martha. A. The happy home of these three. 1. The foundations of their happy home. B. The male figure is removed from the family circle. C. What that home had been in the past. D. The care of the sisters for the sick one. E. They send a loving message to Jesus. F. Those days of testing and.waiting. II. Why was this tragedy allowed to take place? A. Not because of the ignorance of Jesus. B. Neither was it from His powerlessness. C. Neither was it a mark of a lack of his love. 1. There are many sick folks Jesus loves. 2. It was really a mark of His love. 3. He loved them individually. Illustr.: Chappell's own family. a. Love sometimes sees best to let us suffer. 5. God's love sometimes sends disappointments. D. It was because Christ loved these people. 1. He wanted to give them a more wonderful knowledge of Himself. 2. Illustp.: the story of Gwen in “The Sky Pilot" by R. Connor. III. What did Jesus teach these tearful women long ago? A. He teaches that the fact that we suffer does not necessarily mean that He is absent. 1. He was in reality there. 2. There is some suffering that comes because of Christ's absence. B. They learned the wonderful lesson of the sympathy of Jesus. C. They received a new and satisfying assurance of the reality of the after life. D. He teaches the survival of individuality in the after life. 1. Lazarus is still Lazarus. 2. Moses and Elijah are still themselves at the transfiguration. 3. Illpppp.: a Saracens girl calling her lover's name. E. Jesus also teaches the survival of love: death does not kill it. Conclusion: I. An appeal: ”I wonder. . . if this faith is your faith . . .7" II. No price is too great to pay for this knowledge. III. One's darkest hour may be one's brightest and best. IV. Our Lord's purpose for all is that they may come to know Him. (Taken from The Villpgp Ippgedy) 25? ‘APPENDIX IV--D "An Old Time Mother" Introdpction: Is TOXt "" I Samuel 1827,28. II. These are the words of a glad mother, looking into her baby's face. III. We are interested in this wonderful example of motherhood. Discuss on: I. She looked upon motherhood as a privilege. A. Not as drudgery or confining. B. Samuel was a wanted and loved boy. C. Womanhood has a different cultural status today than it did then. D. Woman's greatest power will ever be in the home. 1. We are indeed indebted to some women who have made their contribution outside the home. 2. However we owe more to mother like hrs. Luther and Mrs. thley. II. She was a praying mother. A. The heavy responsibility of parenthood ought to lead mothers and fathers to pray. B. The influence of home prayers on children. 1. "Why are many of the congregation present today?" 2. Illustr.: Chappell's own boyhood home. III. She was a wise mother. A. She recognized her child as God's child. Be She dedicated him to the Lord. 1. I11ustp.: a mother who didn't want any of her boys to be preachers. 2. Illustp.: another mother who wished her children to be called into the ministry. C. She gave him to the Lord in infancy. 1. Some think the child has to go astray first. 2. The Church has thought and written more about children the 1‘“ f“ years. 3. Illustr.: a hearer who said children couldn't know if they were saved. h. Illust:.: Chappell's boyhood-two colts. 5. Illustr.: two kinds of flowers blooming. 6. A child can become a Christian easily for he is childlike by nature. a. Faith is easy for a child. is Illustz. 8 ‘ b1“ Ollt Of thfi moon. ii. We often teach our children distrust. Illustr.: a mother and the "Bogey Man." b. loyalty and love are natural for a child. 7. A child can remain a Christian easier than anyone else. a. A child will miss the bondance of evil habits. Illustp.: a converted drunkard. b..A child will be more likely to escape evil companionships. Illpgpz.: a two-timing husband. 753 APPENDIX IVr'D, cont'd 8. Children make the best Christians. 9. Unless they come as children their chances are slim for becoming Christians. D. ”She made him a little coat"--i.e., she treated him as a child not as an adult. 1. Do not expect a child to have the experiences of an.adu1t. 2. Illustp.: Helen Keller demonstrating the word love. IVs She succeeded. A. All Israel knew that a prohet had arisen. B. He was the logical outcome of his home training. C. A licat n: God has made success possible for all of us. D. Illustp.: Abraham's and Lot's families contrasted. Conclusion: I. The secret of Hannah's success-~vv. 27,28. II. Illpppp.: a chaplain and a boy on the battlefield. (Taken from The Village Ippgedy) 25“ APPENDIX IVuE "A Woman' s Fall" Introduction: I. Text - Gen. 3:13. II. This old story means different things to different people. III. It nevertheless contains a great truth. IV. The heart of humanity remains unchanged through the years. Dispussion: I. She was a tempted woman. A. One of her advantages was, she was well-born. l. Marv children are "half-darmed"at birth. 2. Godly parentage is a great blessing. B. She also had a good environment. II. On the first page of human history we find these two expressions, "God said" and "The serpent said." As "00d “ids " 1. God speaks on every page of history. 2. He speaks in a variety of ways. B. "The serpent said. " 1. His is a downward call. 2. The Bible teaches a personal agency of evil. III. Temptation is a part of life and must be faced. A. God has given man the power to choose for himself. B. That power implies temptation. C. Difficult ways are God's way of making a man. 10 Illustpu Hercules. r 2. Illustpu Samson. 3. onte: Milton. 1}. OtOS JmOSe IV. One great danger of temptation-it is always in a guise. A. Here it is represented as a serpent. 1. Discussion of the talents of a snake. 2. Illpstpu a snake trainer in Iondon. B. In Eden it started innocently, as a question on the serpent's 11m. 1. Sin starts by questioning precept. 2. It focuses attention on the forbidden. a. Illustp. : the oriental palace that lacked a roc's egg. b. Illustpu Blue Beard. C. From raising doubts the tempter moves to positive assertion. 1. "You shall not surely die. " 2. He attacked God' 3 integrity. 3. Bible says, "Fools make a mock at sin. " it. Many are saying, “Sin is not deadly. " V. Some think the knowledge of sin is a great boon. A. Sin does bring knowledge. 255 ‘APPENDIX IVB-E, cont'd B. But knowledge of sin is never power. 1. Illustr.: Jesus Christ. 2. Ask Samson.or a million other blighted men or women. 3. We do not find power and freedom in lawlessness. C. Every law of God is written for our Good. The Ten Commandments are for our good. VI. This woman erred in believing the devil. A. She yielded because she ceased to believe God. B. She plunged and found God's word was true. 1. Illustp.: a news item of guilty lovers committing suicide. VII. Sin means death here and now. A. Sin separates from God. 1. The day she sinned she lost God. 2. She feared God and thought of Him as a judge. B. It also separated her husband from God. C. This separation need not be a final loss. Conclusion: I. God came at once with the promise of a coming Savior (Gen. 3:15). II. Man does not feel content in the Far Country. God calls and W003 'man. III. An appeal to renew the conflict. (Taken from The Village Tpagedy) 256 APPENDIX IV--F "A Glimpse of the After Life" Intppguction: I. Text - Luke 19:31 II. Much that is being said about the after life is false. III. Jesus speaks with authority on this. We have a right to come to this story with confidence. IV. Chappell says that he speaks with conviction from this story. V. It is a wonderful drama in three scenes. Disppssion: I. The first scene-~a typical day in the lives of two men. A. A lovely palace. B. A big banquet at the palace. C. One blot upon the beauty of the scene-a beggar. D. The circumstances of the two men contrasted. II. The second scene-the rich man allowed the beggar to receive only the crumbs. A. Application: People cannot be saved by the crumbs of our time, energy, and money. B. The beggar died. Nobody was disturbed by it. C. The rich man also died. This is news, and he has a funeral. III. The third scene--the curtain rises on the unseen world. A. Quotes vv. 22b,23. B. First, Christ reveals very clearly that the dead are still alive. 1. They are conscious rather than asleep. 2. Jesus taught that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are still alive. 3. Illustp.: Jesus and the penitent thief. C. Second, these men are conscious of being their same selves. 1. They believe themselves to be the same people. 2. They are conscious of family relationships. 3. Death will rob us of our physical and material possessions, but not our personalities. h. Our bodies are not the real self. 5. Neither is the brain the real self. 6. Body and brain may change with age, or even be separated from the soul without altering the self. 7. Death will not work an instant moral change in us. D. Third, Christ teaches that man remember beyond the grave. l. Dives and Iasarus both had memory. 2. Memory‘will intensify the joys of heaven and the pangs of hell. EL Fourth, Christ makes it plain that all men are not going to the same destiny. 1. There is going to be a separation between the Christlike ‘nd the ChristhSSa 2. Who separates them? Not God--men separate themselves. 257 APPENDIX Iver, cont'd 3. h. 5. 6. 7. 8. Conclusion: Why was Lazarus carried into Abraham's bosom? Dives was not lost because he was rich, but because of a wrong choice. a. He chose to live for self rather than for God. b. He chose in the face of light that he had. Where did Iazarus find himself? Where did Dives find himself? Destinies depend on characters, and characters depend on choices. God cannot take into heaven any man who has hell in his heart a I. The dead in sin are laid away in a proper place. A. You can mix the living and the dead even in this life. B. Illustr.: the recent burial of a little child. II. The conclusion of the whole matter-we are going to live forever, consciously, somewhere. III. A final plea to come. (Taken from The Village Tragedy) 258 APPENDIX IV--G "The Cross before Calvary” Introduction: I. Text - I Peter 1:20. II. Christ's part in redemption dates from the eternities. III. God suffers in our suffering. (a truth derived from the book of Hosea) Discussion: I. Our lord's life did not begin at His birth. A. Jesus was a happy, joyous person. B. He was also a man of sorrows. 1. At Lazarus's grave he wept aloud. 2. Illustr.: a man commending his pastor for lack of emotion. C. Both joy and sorrow'were necessary to his humanity. D. The note of joy'was predominant. II. Jesus discloses the Cross to His friends. A. The Cross was a necessity. B. What is it to bear the cross? 1. Some mistakenly consider it to be any burden. Illustr.: a girl who lost her beauty. 2. It is a burden borne voluntarihy. a. Illustr.: parable of the birds. b. Illustr.: an imaginative hearing of Simon of Cyrene speaking. Conglusion: I. To bear the cross is to accept an unwelcome burden. II. Many basic truths are eternally true. III. Many persons experienced the power of the Cross before Calvary. IV. we. too, can join them who knew the power of the Cross before Calvary. V. lines of a hymn--one stanza. (Taken from The gross before Calvary) 259 APPENDIX IVr-H “How God Meets Our Needs" Introduction: I. Text -- Inks 11:18, "He will rise and give him as many as he needeth." II. The text is a climax to a story Jesus told about prayer. III. This is a very homely story containing comedy, tragedy, and triumph. Discussion: I. This promise has its limits. A. God will not grant every wish. 1. There is a wide chasm between wishes and needs. 2. Illustr.: Chappell's boyhood experience with a cigar. 3. If prayer were the gratification of all our wishes, it would wreck the‘wbrld. B. Nor does God promise all we think we honestly need. 1. we may be mistaken about our needs. a. Illustr.: St. Paul and his thorn. b. Illustr.: Christ and the cup (he quotes from Scripture). 2. God does promise, in Paul's words (Phil. #219). to supply ‘11 our needs a II. By this story Jesus tells us how we are to pray in order to give God the opportunity to meet our needs. A. First--a sense of need. 1. A description of the predicament of the friend in the story. 2. An imaginative description of the friend's cogitations. 3. Application: We often turn to God as this man did to his friend--only when we need Him. B. Second--he had to give that friend an opportunity. 1. Illustr.: a woman who didn't call her minister. 2. Illustr.: Chappell receiving a scholarship to Harvard. 3. He stood at his friend's door and requested. a. Illustr.: waiting for a sunrise. b. The friend receives all he needs. III. Whatever our needs, God knows. A. Through prayer we can receive pardoning grace. B. Prayer gives courage. l. Illustr.: the Pealmist who feared. 2. Chappell testifies so. 3. Illustr.: St. Paul, in Acts 27. Conclusion: I. Illustr.: A man in Chappell's ministry who testified he liked to be in a hard place for the Icrd. II. we are in a hard place internationally, nationally, and individ- ually-mmqy the Iord teach us to pray. (Taken from In Egrables) 260 APPENDIX IV-'I "The Han Who Experienced Easter" Introdggtion: I. Text -- Luke 214:31, ”They recognized him." II. thvwas Cleopas's companion? The status of women. III. They came to know Easter as an experience. IV. A drama in four scenes. Discussion: I. Scene I--The Homeward Walk. A. This nor-ally should be one of joy. B. For these two there is no joy that day. C. The grave they have left is unique--it is empty. II. Scene II--0n a different stretch of road, we see three instead or tWOe A. We are never alone. 1. Illustr.: John G. Paton. 2. Illustr.: Ernest Shackleton. 3. Illustr.: the three Hebrew children. B. Why did they not recognize Jesus? 1. He appeared in a resurrection body. 2. They had not the slightest expectation of seeing Him. C. The winsome Stranger leads them toward certainty. D. They constrain Him to stay with them. Illustr.: how to invite or not invite a friend to dinner. III. Scene III-~Within This Humble Home. A. The simple evening meal. B. He is revealed to them. C. He vanishes. This is not an anticlimax, but a preparing of them for His invisible presence. IV. Scene IV--They go forth to tell (a continuing scene). A. They return to Jerusalem with the news. B. It was their experience of the resurrection that sent the handful of believers out to the world. Conclusion: I. An affirmation of Chappell's faith in the resurrection. II. w. need more than evidence-~we need experience. He concludes with a series of parallel statements, contrasting evidence and experience in several different areas. (Taken from Meet These men) 261 APPENDIX IVr-J "A Cry from the Cross" Introduction: I. Texts - Psalm 22:1 and Hatt. ?7:46, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" II. These words are also the age-old cry of the ace, the cry of countless millions. III. We find here incomprehensible words on the lips of the Son of God. Discussion: I. Upon the lips of Jesus these words have two striking peculiarities. A. Here Jesus addresses the Infinite by a name never elsewhere used--"God.” Elsewhere He almost always uses ”Father.” B. Also, this is the only recorded question that Jesus ever asked Of G'Ode II. What does this question on the part of Jesus indicate? A. It indicates a sense of forsakenness. 1. Momentarily He had lost His sense of the divine presence. 2. He had always enjoyed this presence in an intimate way. B. This cry also indicates perplexity. 1. His perplexity was intensely real-never pretended. 2. His experiences are real, or else they are useless to us. C. This question is born of terrible agony. 1. There was intense physical agony. 2. But greater was the spiritual suffering. III. H w are we to account for this perplexity and agony on the part of Jesus Christ our'Icrd? A. This perplexity and agony was not due to any consciousness on the part of Christ of the anger of God-there was not such. B. Neither are we to assume that His faith had been shattered--His faith was firm and strong. C. In this He was fully identifying with humanity. In sharing our nature, He shares our perplexities. D. Because of His perplexity, He can be fully sympathetic to us in our grim difficulties. He is not angry with us when we question. E. This agony of bewilderment is the natural outcome of his identi- fication with us in our sin. Conclusion: I. His agonizing bewilderment is born of His sharing the bewilder- ment of the sheep. II. His very suffering wins us. III. This cry of seeming defeat becomes a shout of victory. (Taken from.8e:mpns from the Psalms) 262 ‘APPENDIX IVr-K "Made for Mastery” Introduction: I. Text - Psalm 8:6, "Thou madest himmto have dominion." II. The PSalmist is in tune with Genesis 1. III. Some do not accept the declarations of this Psalm. Discussion: I. Three bold assertions are made here. A. That man is God-made. 1. The Psalmist is concerned with the whg_of creation, not the 21.01!- 2. He believes that man is God's handiwork. B. That this God-made man is a grand creature. la Made 8. little lower than 60d. 2. He shares in his Father's nature and image. 3. Yet man is also kin to the dust. C. That man is made for a high and worthy destiny. 1. He is not a plaything, victim, or slave. 2. He is made to be a master. II. Many today are given to belittling man rather than magnifying him. A. He is belittled by being robbed of his high origin. Some view man as a product of blind forces. B. He is also belittled by his environment. 1. Man is dwarfed by the universe. 2. Illustr.: Mark Twain's story. C. Han is belittled.by his loss of freedom. 1. Biologists have made man a slave of his environment: and psychologists have made man the playing of outward stimuli. 2. Some call this the second fall of man. 3. Macaulay quote on Calvinism. III. The Psalmist's concept of man is very refreshing. A. His view of man enlists my desire. 1. It gives me the will to believe. 2. Illustr.: fictitious story of Harvard student and Yale student. B. His position appeals to my intelligence. 1. Man as God-made is easier to believe than as chance-made. 2. Hard to doubt man's significance when we contemplate his accomplishments. 3. It is easier to believe in free personality than in man as a machine. C. The poet's view has evidence in the world about me. 1. Han has mastered the lower orders. 2. He is conquering disease, etc. 3. By electricity, radio, airplane, etc., man is conquering. 263 APPENDIX IvrrK, cont'd IV. ‘We are still very far from realizing God's dream for us. A. In a world of physical abundance many are still impoverished. B. we fall far short in the realm of the spirit. 1. In many things we are slaves instead of masters. 2. God's plan is for inner freedom and mastery. C. How then shall we win this mastery that God wills? 1. Not by force. 2. Self-mastery comes through self-surrender. Illustr.: St. Paul. 3. Illustr.: David Livingstone captured hearts through love. D. Modern family life also lacks stability and harmony. 1. like the house founded upon the sand. 2. Illustr.: Haggie and Jiggs. 3. Illustr.: a husband and frail‘Wife on board ship. Conclusion: The world will be saved when men and women are‘Willing to be in sub- jection to one another out of reverence for Christ. (Taken from Sermons from the Psalms) 264 APPENDIX IVr-L "The Whiting Guest“ Introduction: I. Text -- Rev. 3:20, “Behold I stand at the door and knock: . . . " II. This text is a rare gem in this particular letter (to Laodicea) and in this book. III. The text thrills us because it is amazing good news. A. Christ is at our door. B. Illustr.: a pulpit scout who visited Chappell's church. Discussion: I. What does this tell us about our risen lord? A. Christ is still on the same quest that brought Him into the world. B. He is seeking aggressively. l. The first move toward our salvation is made by Him. 2. He knocks but does not force His way in. Illustr.: a wealthy playboy. 3. Some may say, "He never knocks at my door." Chappell replies: “In so saying you are entirely mistaken." II. If He knocks at our door, how does He knock? A. He knocks through our failures and sufferings. l. Illustr.: an enslaved man who was helpless. 2. Illustr.: a defeated and bored man. 3. Illustr.: a wretched woman spoiled by hate. B. Christ knocks through the vision of our better selves. l. Illustr.: Christ saw possibilities in Simon Peter. 2. We may not respond and settle back in contentment. Poem: of an old, tame duck. C. Christ knocks through our sense of inadequacy. 1. Some people aspire, yet fail. 2. Some strong men also fail. Illustz. 3 Sta Paul. D. He knocks through our inability to gg_our best. 1. He knocks through the needs of others. 2. He knocks through the needs of our homes. E. He is knocking through every precious memory of yesterday: His Wbrd, His ministers, etc. III. It tells us something about ourselves. A. It tells us we are grand creatures in spite of our sin. B. It tells us if Christ is to become our guest, it must be through our own choosing. 1. Man must consent. 2. Illustr.: the one lost sheep. 3. lust .: the lost son *Zthe sheep by force, the son by entreaty) 265 APPENDIX IV--L, cont'd IV. How then shall I have Christ as my guest? A. By simply opening the door-He enters. B. To open the door is to be willing to obey at any cost. Conclusion: I. To put your life in God's hand is all-important. A. Illustr.: the rich young ruler. B. Illustr.: Matthew (Levi) II. The outcast opened the door: the prince shut it in His face. 'What will you.do? (Taken from Sermons from Revelation) A PPEN DIX V--A Lansing, Michigan July 31, 1969 Dr. Clovis Chappell Wiverly, Tennessee Dear Dr. Chappell, I am.a pastor for the United Brethren in Christ, and a graduate student at Nichigan State University, near where I live at the moment. Harold Cherry is my name. A number of years ago (in 19H5 or #6, I believe) it was my privilege to hear you minister in a Ienten Crusade in Huntington, Indiana, while I was attending Huntington College in that city. You spdke for most of a week in the First Methodist Church there--prcbably you will remember. My purpose in‘writing is this: I am a doctoral student in speech and am nearing the conclusion of my course work, and then the dissertation. As a minister and preacher, I purpose to study some preacher of note. Your name and books have been in my mind and attention for years as someone whose preaching I would like to study. Since a work like this needs to be largely an original work, I would like to ask, h§g_ggy doctoral thesis been done, studying your preaching ministry, of which you are aware? My adviser, Dr. Kenneth Hance, says that someone somewhere did a master's thesis (on a more_limited basis) some few years ago, which would not preclude me from doing a more extended work. If no extended study, such as a doctoral thesis, has been done, then I would be free to go further. If I were to pursue this proposed study, I would desire to have the pri- vilege of meeting you sometime and spending a few hours to get acquainted and to ask questions, if it could be arranged. I would try not be burden- some to you. I would hope it might result in some satisfaction to you if you could extend your ministry in this way--by contributing to the train- ing and development of another, who in.turn might some day have a part in the training of ministers in the great work of preaching. Enclosed is a return envelope (with my new address, since we are moving). If convenient, I would appreciate an early reply whether or not your preaching has been studied by any other doctoral student, so that I may kgow‘whether to continue down this road, or whether I shall have to turn e sewhere. Sincerely in Christ, (signed) (ROVO) H‘I‘Old Re ChOI'I'Ye 266 .APPENDIX V--B CLOVIS G. CHAPPELL waverly, Tennessee August a, 1969 My dear Brother Cherry, Thank you for your gracious letter. Acress the long years I have had several communications akin to that made by you. However, if anything ever came of it, not one of the writers let me know. Therefore, so far as I know, the field is now clear for you. A few months ago I had a request to furnish two sermons and biographical matter for two professors of the Baptist Seminary in Fort worth. They were getting out a book or books on certain prominent preachers of the last few centuries. This book will be out, I am told, in 1970. However, it will not be akin to yours. If you undertake the task, of course I would be glad to see and talk with you. Thanking you for your interest, and with every good wish, I am, Yours in His service, (signed--Clovis Chappell) 267