The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1868-11-07

AMERICAN MISSIONARY AssooIA-
rIoN.-The American Missionary As
ISOLATION commenced its annual meet
inpin Springfield, Massachusetts,, Rev.
DIR. N. E. Kirk. of Boston. presiding.
The receipts of last year were $780,
O94, and the expenditures $356.225.
The present indebtedness is $685. 26,
of which $51.315 was incurred last
year. The Society OWNS property to
the amount Of $199,4O5 in excess of
all debts. Rev. DIR. John Todd, of
Pittsfeld, preached the annual SER
mon in the evening, and Gen. How
ard, of the Freedmen's Bureau, made
an address on Thursday evening.
Communicated.
The question of RitNalism seems to
have been disposed OF IN a very COM
mon sense manner by the late Ueneral
Convention of the Episcopal Cnurcn.
A comparison of views and facts In
debate showed it to relate to matters
of taste rather than doctrine. AND as
an external of worship, concerned
win E06 mGEG AduzAoSO VI
EXPRESSION of religious service, the
Indictment of the learned House of
DEPUTIES was that the subject was not
worthy of special legislation, demand
| ed no canon, and so was relegated to
the House of Bishops to be left to
the advice and direction of each
Bishop in his own Diocese. This Is
as it should be.
- w-.0,@@~4an Of tho
Nation says: "All this fuss about
Ritualism is a case of much ado about
not quite nothing, but about very lit
tie indeed" II is probable that, take
twenty people who are troubled about
| this matter, no two of them would
entirely agree as to just what Ritual
ism means, or in what it consists. This
Un0stenesS serves one convenient puT-
pose. Like the dog which Beecher
described as persisting in barking
every day at a hole In the wall be-
cause a squirrel had once vanished in
it; so, many persons imagine they
scent game in this question, because
the Roman Church has a Ritual. AS
if, because that Church wears certain
vestments and employs certain ges-
lures in conducting divine worship,
| IllCIClOIO all ObAOAo NAO WOoA NOoIO
ments and act reverently in their
worship must be on the high road to
that communion. Is there necessari-
ly a squirrel there nOt0 because seen
In the hole a month ago? The world
moves. Many things change. Peo-
pie now and then outlive their preju-
dices as they do their clothes. Rogues
and gentlemen dress very much alike.
Does that external likeness make them
the same in sentiment? 1t is usually
supposed that doctrine not tailoring
ones creed not his external drapery-
constitute the essential thing. Faith
may remain the same, while the mode
of expressing it may vary with taste,
circumstances, time, &c.
The Puritans smashed stained glass
windows in churches because they
bore symbolical pictures. All seets
which sprung from that stock now
hardly think q church completed
without "a dim religious light" from
costly stained glass. The material
cross was another mark of the beast
a rag of Popery," for which good
men seeded from the Church. Now,
as related by a New England man in
this General Convention, there are
five Presbyterian Churches in Boston
full of symbolism" and one of them
has a cross ten feet higher than
Bunker Hill Monument" All this
Is pure RitudLiSnt. 1t belongs to the
externals of Religion. The minutes
of the first Methodist Conference Ia
this country prescribed very plain
churches without great cost or show.
Now we see elegant churches of that
progressive denomination, costing
more money than Wesley and Asbury
aver saw, with
Gorgeous windows, richly Digit"
Aud this is Ritualism. People see
no harm In thus making religion
worthy of its object. Deccncy and
reverence in the mode or expression
of a thing are sometimes closely con-
nected with common respect for that
thing. Men may vary In their tastes
respecting the attendants of worship.
But, then, why quarrel about taste,
before you prove that it changes doc
trlne? 1t was once "~ritualistic to
have any prescribed form of prayer.
, Now hardly any Christian bSdy dis
penses with forms" in some shape
or at some services. Do those bodies
think they have Appropriated to
Rome because In some things they
!, do as the Romans?" Perhaps the
time may come when, in other than
Episcopal Churches, they may be
allowed a little variety in the manner
with unity in faith = agreement in
creed, without a forced sameness OF
ceremonial. Procrustes was a high
wayman of Attica. He had a bed of
a fixed size and length. He insisted
upon laying people on this bed, and
when they happened to be longer
than the bel, he used to cut
off the superlative length; il
they were shorter, he stretched then
out of joint to make their length
equal to the bed. Is it not just pos
sible that many good people may be
demanding for their rigid uniformity
In the style of rendering their reli-
gious services a Pr0crustedn bed, q
: test too cramped and unyielding tC
diverse tastes and natures? At any
rate, It any denomination of Chris
tlans don't want to be confined to
such a bed, why not allow them to
have an elastic spring one as a substi.
tute1 Possibly it is a matter of taste
whether people stand up or kneel
down to pray. Its Rttu0Etsna in both
cases.. some ministers serve at the
altar In a black gown; others in a
white surplice; still others in colored
raiment, and not a few in plain citi-
zen costume of sober black, Ritualism
also. Again, some repeat prayers
and praises out of a book, with open
| eyes; others compose forms of prayer
as they go along with closed eyes.
Here, too, is RitualIsm. Perhaps it
may be thought that real toorship is
of more consequence than the man.