LENZIE AND KIRKINTILLOCH.
residential suburbs of northern Glasgow, were privileged with the ministrations of the evangelists on Sabbath. The forenoon meeting in the Free Church, Lenzie, was a very large one. In the afternoon the crowd overflowed Free St. Davids, Kirkintilloch, into the Temperance Hall, where Mr Sankey spoke as well as sang. At night the two Established Churches in Kirkintilloch were crowded out. The building which accommodated the overflow is said to be one of the oldest buildings in the district, and did duty about six centuries ago as a Romish place of worship. It is cruciform in shape and has some
KILSYTH.
This quiet country spot was the scene in 1839 of a wonderful revival, in which Wm. Burns, McCheyne, and the Bonars were the leading human agents. The meeting on Monday week was in the Free Church, and very large. Most of the shopkeepers in the place had closed their doors for a couple of hours so as to set buyers and sellers free to hear the Gospel. Rev John Robertson, of Gorbals, and others did the work of following up. We have no definite information as to results.
CAMPSIE
7 miles distant, was visited the same evening. This place, unlike Kilsyth is said to be famous, perhaps notorious, and never having had anything that could be called a season of revival. It has a population of 5,000, many of the people being workers in the print works and chemical works. To the evening meeting contingents came from the surrounding districts, many walking five or 6 miles to be present. It is affirmed that the ancient Parish church, in which the evangelists delivered their messages, had only once before in all its history been lighted up artificially for an evening service. A lot of paraffin lamps did duty instead of gas. The father of the famous Norman McLeod was once minister of this parish, and the remains of the illustrious Presbyterian divine himself now mingle with the dust in the churchyard. Having kindled the torch of spiritual interest that evening, Mr Moody and Mr Sankey left it to be kept alight by various Glasgow ministers, who held after services in the Free and UP churches.
The two evangelists next took a clear jump across Glasgow to the southern suburb of
RUTHERGLEN
where meetings were held on Tuesday afternoon and evening. Rutherglen is a very ancient Burg, older than Glasgow itself. Indeed, it claims to be the parent of Scotland’s great commercial capital. Large crowds came out to see and hear the American friends on both occasions. In the evening the doors of the central meeting place had to be shut long before the hour and a large overflow congregation in the Institute was addressed by Mr J Campbell White. Good and solid work was done for eternity and the impression was deepened here also by following up meetings on subsequent evenings.
CAMBUSLANG
lies almost adjacent to Rutherglen and to this place the evangelists transferred their services on Wednesday. There are several points of interest about Cambuslang that might be noted. One item of painful interest is the fact that the main street of the place contains 20 drink shops, save one. There are large steel works in the neighbourhood and many of the skilled artisans earn wages ranging from £3 to £5 a week. One would like to know exactly what proportion of these big weekly earnings is diverted from the homes of the workers into that bag without a bottom – the till of the publican. Local Christian workers greatly lament the prevalence of drunkenness and religious death.
The two chief meetings of the day were held in the Kirkhill Parish Church. An interesting thing about the building is that nearby is the spot where Whitfield preached to 20,000 persons 130 years ago. In the prayers that went up to God from the two congregations on Wednesday there was some earnest preaching that God would bring back again the manifestations that mark those olden times. The probable thing is that the Christian Church of today can do a great deal to answer its own prayer in that respect. Any other disposition would be flatly blasphemous. Mr Moody proclaimed the gospel message in the evening with as much abandonment, intensive soul and fervour of utterance as any Whitfield could have done and in all outward appearance, he easily swayed the vast throng, as wave after wave of emotion rolled over it. The after-meeting was large and good. There was an overflow in another church some distance off; here Mr Sankey sang three Gospel songs you saying songs with the help of Mrs Oates and Mr Oates preached. The gathering was not large but some ripe fruit was gathered. At the main meeting almost all the ministers in Cambuslang and Rutherglen were present. Surely they must have caught some of the fire that Mr Moody‘s utterences always generate! But indeed, observation throughout Scotland needs one to believe that the average modern minister is a very incombustible entity!
From, "The Christian," March 10th, 1892
I included these other reports here because none of them mention the spiritual state of the meetings. However, if they followed the other Moody meetings, it is probable that the people were well stirred up. They were all large meetings and the fact that nearly all the ministers from Cambuslng and Rutherglen were there showed the deep interest.