The secret of the great success of Dr. Behrends as a preacher was not to be found in his striking personality, nor in his musical voice, nor his profound scholarship, but rather in his strong faith in the Bible as the Word of God, as his only creed, and that Christ Jesus, the divine Saviour, is to win the whole world to Himself. From this belief he never wavered, and to him the preaching of the gospel to men and seeing them come into the kingdom was the joy of his soul.
RICHARD SALTER STORRS.
CHARLES A. HULL, CHAIRMAN.
I shall not attempt to repeat what has been so fully said by the religious and secular journals of the country in reference to the life and work of this great and good man, but I desire to say a few words in regard to his connection with the anti-slavery movement, and his interest in the work of the American Missionary Association. He was an original Abolitionist, and one of the most pronounced even in the early years of the agitation in his opposition to the wickedness of slavery, and in later years the cause of the elevation of the freedman had no stronger nor better friend than he.
In an article written for the Fiftieth Anniversary Number of The Independent, of which he was one of the original editors, speaking of the conditions at the time The Independent was founded, and the attitude of some of the societies toward slavery, Dr. Storrs added: "And repeated efforts to induce the American Board of Foreign Missions to take decisive anti-slavery ground, while carrying on its work among Cherokees and Choctaws and other slaveholding peoples, wholly failed of success—out of which failure came, however, the American Missionary Association, since so justly honored, and so widely and nobly useful."
By spoken and by written word he contributed much to the cause of Christian education in the South and among the so-called dependent races.
About ten years ago he preached a special sermon upon "Our Nation's Work for the Colored People," in which, speaking of the work of the Association, he said: "Now I affirm absolutely that if there ever was a work of God on earth, this is His work! If there was ever anything to which the American Christian people were called, they are called to this. If there was ever a great opportunity before the Christian Church, here it is; not to reach those people merely for their own immediate welfare; not to save our own national life merely; but to Christianize that immense continent which lies opposite to us on the map, which we have wronged so long with the slave-trade and with rum, and to which now we can, if we will, send multitudes of messengers to testify of the glory of the grace of God."
I wish in closing to say a few words of Dr. Storrs as a friend. Through many years he was not only my pastor but the most honored and beloved friend of my life. His sense of humor was keen, and his playfulness of manner constituted not the least of his charms to those who knew him intimately. He never seemed to take a narrow view of any subject, but was always lenient to and tolerant of those whose opinions differed from his own, and yet strong and vigorous in his own convictions. His loss to those closely associated with him in personal and Church relations is one which can never be filled. He was extremely modest in his estimate of himself and his efforts, and simple-minded to a wonderful degree for a man of such supreme power and influence. He never shirked what appeared to him a duty, and one of the pleasantest recollections of my life is of a journey made by him, at considerable personal inconvenience, only about a year ago, to visit a former parishioner who had not seen him for years, and who in his old age and feebleness desired to talk with him. His visit brought sunshine and mental and spiritual comfort, and will ever be gratefully remembered by those to whom he ministered.
In grandeur of thought, in nobility of utterance, and in his wonderful personality, he was unique, and his death has left in the American pulpit a void which we cannot expect to see filled.