Page:The Homes of the New World- Vol. I.djvu/271

Rh have this thought livingly present to our minds, that we should behold them as transformed by the spirit of Christ; we should think, how beautiful will my husband, my friend, my brother, become, when this his failing, or that his short-coming is done away with, when he stands forth transfigured through the divine life! Oh how patient, how gentle, how affectionate, how hopeful, are we not capable of becoming! Such was the substance of the young minister's discourse, but how earnestly and convincingly he spoke is not for me to describe. I also partook of the sacrament, to which he invited all Christians present, of whatever name or sect they might be, as well as strangers from other lands. The bread (small square pieces of bread upon a plate) and the wine, were carried to the benches and passed on from hand to hand, which took considerably from the solemnity of the ceremony. How beautiful is our procession to the altar, and after that the hallelujah song of the assembly!

The ritual of our Swedish church, as expressive of the religious feeling of the assembly, seems to me also to be better and more perfect than that of any other church with which I am acquainted, yet nevertheless even that might be better still. But the sermons and the hymns are better in this country; the former have considerably more reality, and are more applicable to actual life; and the latter have more life and beauty also, and would have still more if they were really sung by the congregation. This however I have to object against the hymns of the United States, that they are sung by a trained choir in the gallery, and all the rest of the congregation sit silently and listen just as they would sit in a concert-room. Some accompany them, reading from their hymn-books, but others never open theirs. When I have occasionally lifted up my voice with the singers I have seen my neighbours look at me with some surprise. And then the hymns and psalms here are so full of rhythm, have