New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1850-06-22

OF 70 day. Not one OF TIE uutns Nnicn ne sayeb
His disciples to plant in the hear. OF the race hes
been ost Not one Of the holy offerings which he
left as the renovators Of the has been left be-
bind. To keep these, to keep them in the heart Of
the world has been the care and the achievement
OF the Church Of the Past And what improve.
ments and ameliorations have these sentiments
wrought out in the history Of Christian natons
since they were frs. mingled in the mind of tia
rscef To what nights Of attainment have thev
already raised the nations Of Christendomi Will
all other schemes and all othe experiments h.y.
failed-while Africa and China and the Islands a.
the Sea ere clothed ia weeds and weeping oys
the tombs Of buried endeavor, within the iIlaminsi
circle Of civilization, Christisn peoples and king
doms are beginning TO chant the coming Of a day.
star Ct He. e. and 10 ascend the discovered walk
Of Improvement, waiting the dawn Of Millensl
| Age. The sentiments which Christs first DISC.
pies deposited in the heart OF the race and which
it has been the care OF successive generations
10 foster and propagate are working oat thss
| grand contamination Of Human Hope aud DESTINY
the deliverance and regeneration OF the raos
| To keep alive these sentiments. to spread them
from heart to heart and family to family, to conduct
thus to lesven at length the entire mass OF apps.
tate mind and revyify the soul Of the race with the
life and the spirit OF God, to guard aud guide and
disseminate these principles of grace till they
have achieved their work AID fashioned god-lks
race and glorious fGture-this 10 one OF the tasks
given to the disciples Of Christ to accomplish while
detained on Christian soil and waiting the signal
| OF departure.
| Here, then, my brethren is the home work Of the
| Church. And what better message can you cary,
as sou go forth to speak in Chrisfs name to sAs
Church Of cur land, than TO say TO them that thsy
have this work, this home work upon their hsnds-
and that Heaven Earth, aud all the ages Of the
future are filing the air with tongues that cry con.
,nuslly in the ear Of the Church that this work may
| be done.
shall oncude what have to say in this ID.
dress by deriving from the discussion. 40 have
| conducted it. two practical suggestons-ons ~
| lating TO the character which ought to mark tie
American Theology the other to the charactr
which ought to distinguish the American Ministry.
/ will not here enter upon an argument to prove
that American Observation-Disclosures Society,"
American Thought-American Religion-are des-
tined TO lead and convey the Institutions the 3d.
ceties the Thoughts and the Religions Of the world
on the great world. career Of the goth century. |
beIeye il, aud believe that upon Us living in the
confines of that coming Goth century rests al the
responsibility of such predestned precedence
all the responsibility Of predppointed guidance and
Leadership in that expected exodus for which time
and nations are now together preparing.
Assuming that this is to be the position aad the
place Of the America Of the coming century, and
keeping in mind that the great work OF the Church
is TO be, az it has been, the work Of social recon
struction / nquire-what ought to be the dishn
gushing characteristic Of our American Theology!
| The Theology of the Church has ever two faces
one looking Heavenward, the other contemplating
! Earth. In one view, therefore, since God II he
same and bis truth Interchangeable; and since The
Theology of the Church is to be simply and solely
the Theology of her Scriptures, age and no posi-
ton can demand change In the Theology OF the
Church Through al the revolutions Of time an
all the vicisstudes oil history the old eternal gin
of Scripture to shine upon the nations and guide
the ing ages as the old stars and eternal
suns of Heaven illumine our pastures and smile %
| our seas, and lead our races from generation %
generation.
But this is only half OF the truth The theolosy
of the Church is to be theology for the times q
well as theology of the Bible. And the ssa-s ell
truth of Scripture, which turned face and aanst
light upon the poly theisms of antiquity, and turned
another face and fang another light upon the Gao
| ticism and the Platonisms OF later times-sA
turned third face and looked with third smile
| upon the sciences and the discoveries OF moder
| dsys-these old unchansing truths have as maY
radiant faces for the world the world has dnhea
ed faces for them. Like the orbed sun wbeelinsh
space, they shine on every side, and send sia@
aid smile to every sphere which they pass 2
their orbit. 1t is given to every successive age
History to have its own questions, and to wofsoa
its own problems And it is given 10 the Chara
to have a theology which, while its light andjn h'
mament are ever the same, ever from above sniGa
down upon the successive ages of time and sen6
guidance and salvation to every inquirag era
The theology Of the Church Is ever to be theon
gy for its own age-a theology keeping pace VIVA
Proyidence-a theology in sympathy with Us uns
"A theology full of the instinct, alive with the syn
psthies, and at the head Of the movements Of 10
era. What then ought to be the character OF OK
American theology at this momenti What an
the great questions which are at this moment sb
sorbing the attention and testing the ntelects end
Try ing the hearts Of milionsl Ia Senates, ia pss
aces 10 sheds what are the movements which
like leading suns, decoyirg after them al tnln1
ing souls and all earnest thoughts. Why NOT tns
| old questions which vexed the sluggish thoughts
stoics and soothed the enmities Of schoolmen i~
age isnot careering backward to the colsIef AD
the academy, 70 revive the debates oil Scosas az
rehease the discoLrses Of the Eat. oos'
! qdestions, the great problems Of humanity
! the fundamental naxims Of human iiberty-~
r;shts of citizens the powers of States, the disn
hr.;ons of wealth, the relations and prerosstivS